Several agencies investigate cocaine bricks found in Biloxi, leading to one arrest

BILOXI, Miss. (WLOX) -Several agencies are investigating 15 bricks of cocaine found across the city of Biloxi.

Over the weekend several people reported finding suspicious packages in Biloxi, including at Deer Island and Schooner Pier. Biloxi Police Capt. Tommy Goldsworthy said around eight packages were found by volunteers during a beach cleanup.

“Keesler has a lot of volunteers that come out and maintain that area of the beach, and while they were doing so they noticed a package in the water and while they were doing so they noticed several more,” Goldsworthy said.

Biloxi Police Department conducted a field test indicating the substances was indeed cocaine.

The Department of Marine Resources is also involved after finding more bricks near Deer Island. Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics Director Steven Maxwell said they are still investigating exactly where the bricks came from.

“There was likely to be a larger amount of drugs that either fell off a vessel or they were intentionally dropped off to be picked up by someone else or another group of individuals,” Maxwell said.

The packages have a “Dior” label on them which plays a crucial role in locating where they came from.

Harrison County Sheriff’s Department Lt. Rob Drace said they examine the packages and put it into a system.

“The markings on the kilo packaging and we try to put them into a federal database which identifies and classifies them to other seizures in the database,” Drace said.

Police are now asking for people to report any suspicious packages found.

During a consensual search, 37-year-old Joey Ware was found with narcotics divided up for sale. Police later found a kilo and a half of cocaine that was in the same packaging as other bricks found at the beach, leading them to believe Ware found and kept a brick instead of reporting it to police.

Ware is now being charged with aggravated drug trafficking.

“Instead of calling us like everybody should be doing, he tried to use it for his own gains. Officers were notified of this information and he was arrested,” Goldsworthy said.

Several agencies are continuing to investigate where the bricks came from.

“The Biloxi Police Department, Homeland Security Investigations, Customs Border Patrol, DEA, and the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources. This investigation is ongoing among all those agencies to include the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics,” Maxwell said.

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