Dacula Teen Charged With Marijuana, Weapon Possession -- Dacula Patch

A suspicious activity call at Dacula Park led to the arrest of a local teen on charges of marijuana and weapon possession.

Gwinnett County Police were dispatched to the park on Sept. 7 in response to a report of several young males gathered in the park near the pavilion. When police arrived, the male subjects immediately got into their respective vehicles and drove away.

An officer stopped one of the vehicles for a brake light violation. During the course of the traffic stop, another officer asked for permission to search the vehicle. The driver of the vehicle initially said he needed to leave, but then granted consent for the search. The officers asked the driver and passengers to exit the vehicle. While patting down one of the passengers, identified as Deion Strayhon, 18, of Dacula, the officer noticed “an overwhelming odor of marijuana.”

During the search of the vehicle, officers located a .38 caliber handgun in the back pouch of the front passenger seat.  Strayhon and a juvenile passenger were detained in handcuffs since the weapon had been within their reach. Both Strayhon and the juvenile denied owning the gun or knowing to whom it belonged.

A few moments later, one of the officers noticed a small, red plastic baggy containing a green, leafy material which appeared to be marijuana on the ground approximately five feet from where Strayhon had been standing. Upon questioning, Strayhon said the marijuana was not his, however, during a subsequent search of his person, the officer located another red baggy containing marijuana in Strayhon’s pants.

Strayhon was placed under arrest on charges of possession of marijuana and possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime. The juvenile was advised he was being arrested on a charge of minor in possession of a handgun. The juvenile was later released to a parent.

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Noble Village Plans Continue Despite Charges vs. Developer - Peachtree Corners Patch

The demolition crews had barely begun their work in razing the old Faith Life Church on Spalding Drive to make way for a new senior living center, when the news hit that one of the principals in the company developing the property had been charged with bribery by the federal government.

Mark Gary, one of three principals in Gary Holding Company, was charged on Sept. 5 with bribing a Gwinnett County Commissioner in 2009. He appeared before a United States Magistrate judge and was release on bond.

But Peachtree Corners residents who lived nearby had been waiting for several years to see the bulldozers arrive to tear down the old church and buildings that had long fallen into disrepair. A fire last November to the church building only added to the eyesore the property had become.

What would happen now, some have wondered out loud. Would the development be halted due to the charges against Mark Gary? Patch contacted Gary's attorney, Paul Kish, who is handling his case for a response.

"We can't say anything right now," said Kish in regards to the federal charges against his client. "but we do not expect this federal case to get in way or impede the development," he added.

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