Joint Rolling at QT Draws Attention of GCPD Investigators

Unlawfully parking in an handicap spot is bad. Rolling a joint in view of four police investigators is very bad. Hitting one of the investigators with your car as you try to avoid arrest is much worse.

Investigators were in the parking lot of Quiktrip on Hamilton Mill Parkway around 7 p.m. on Aug. 2 when a black Acura occupied by three individuals parked in a handicap space next to the investigators' vehicle.  According to the arrest report, the backseat passenger exited the vehicle and went inside the convenience store. At that point, one of the investigators noticed the front seat passenger "reaching into the floorboard and he appeared to be rolling a joint."


The passenger, the report stated, "appeared nervous and was looking around constantly" as was the driver, later identified as 17-year-old Cornelius Cupsa of Buford.

Two of the investigators approached Cupsa's vehicle and showed their badges to identify themselves as police. 

"As I was doing this, I observed a plastic container full of marijuana and multiple small zip lock style bags on the passenger floorboard," the investigator noted in the report.

When questioned about the marijuana, the driver reportedly put the car into reverse and started backing up while the backseat passenger climbed back into the car. According to the report, the backseat passenger then told the driver to stop and exited the moving car. As it was backing up, the front door of the car struck one of the investigators in his side, and that investigator jumped inside of the car and removed the keys from the ignition.

Cupsa was arrested and charged with possession of marijuana with intent to distribute and obstruction of an officer, according to jail records. He was transported to the jail by a uniformed officer. The 16-year-old teen in the passenger seat, also from Buford, was charged with possession of marijuana with intent to distribute and released to his parents.  The backseat passenger wasn't charged. 

Investigators seized 27.9 grams of marijuana, a digital scale, plastic bags and a cell phone from the car.  After obtaining a search warrant for the cell phone a few days following the incident, detectives noted in the report that they found photos of marijuana on phone.

For more local crime news, visit the Dacula Patch crime page.