Law enforcement leaders in Galveston County announced at a press conference the arrest of a man they accuse of dealing drugs close to local schools and college campuses. Officials said the suspect, identified as 50-year-old Jamel McDonald, was taken into custody following what they described as a sizable drug bust south of Houston, with narcotics on display at the table during the briefing.
According to the officials, McDonald was arrested on or about August 18 in the 200 block of Appomattox Drive in Texas City. He faces two felony drug charges, and his combined bond has been set at two million dollars. Investigators said he remains in custody as the case moves forward.
The command staff stressed what they said made the case especially serious. They said the drugs seized had been packaged in a way meant to appeal to young students, and that, based on the information they had gathered, McDonald was targeting students, including college students, in the community.
Investigator Ira Fowler laid out how the case came together. He said the investigation began roughly two months ago after authorities received information about a known narcotics house. During periods of surveillance, he said, officers observed what appeared to be teenage children buying narcotics, which allowed them to establish probable cause, obtain a search warrant and execute it the previous week.
Officials framed the operation in personal terms, noting that the command staff, the district attorney's office and the Galveston police chief were all born and raised in the area. They said the last thing they want is a drug dealer operating in close proximity to their schools and college campuses, and that stopping that conduct was the point of the enforcement push.
District Attorney Kenneth Cusick credited the agencies that carried out the work, thanking the Sheriff's Department, the Galveston Police Department, the League City Police Department and the Dickinson Police Department as parts of the Organized Crime Task Force. He called the investigation and arrest a great feat by the officers involved.
Cusick was careful to note that McDonald is only alleged to have committed the offenses, has been charged and is now in custody. He said he intends to seek prosecution to the full extent of the law, adding that pursuing maximum penalties has been a consistent approach for his office across cases involving domestic violence, gambling and drugs.