A transient who held a sign that said “in need of weed” at the Carson Nugget faces misdemeanor drug charges, while the man who allegedly sold him marijuana faces felony charges, authorities said.
The alleged seller, Timothy Kinsey, 43, of Carson City was arrested, as was the transient, Zachary Gonzales, following the alleged transaction seen by Nugget security.
According to the arrest report, Carson City sheriff’s deputies arrived at the Carson Nugget June 4 after security informed them that Gonzales was holding up a sign that said “in need of weed.” The security officers said they observed Gonzales approach a small gold-colored four-door sedan where they saw a hand-to-hand transaction take place. Gonzales was detained by security until deputies arrived.
Gonzales was asked if he knew why he was detained and the 19-year-old said that he had no idea and that he had been given two Baby Ruth candy bars by an unknown man, according to the arrest report.
The arresting deputy told the suspect that security had witnessed some kind of transaction between himself and an unknown man. The deputy asked Gonzales if he had any weapons or contraband on him.Gonzales said no.
When the deputy asked him if he would consent to a pat search, Gonzales became nervous and blurted out “I have weed and a pipe in my pocket.’” He also told the officer that he had a small knife in his pants pocket.
Gonzales told the deputy where the marijuana and pipe were and the deputy recovered them from his pockets.
Gonzales told the officer that he was living on the street and would only be in the Carson City area for a few days and had no plans to return.
While the deputy spoke with Gonzales, Nugget security located the alleged seller, Timothy Kinsey, who is the registered owner of the vehicle Gonzales had approached for the marijuana, according to the arrest report. Kinsey was detained by security. As he was escorted out of the casino, he took a small marijuana pipe out of his pocket and threw it on the ground, according to the arrest report. Security recovered the pipe.
Deputies spoke with Kinsey and asked if he knew what was going on. Kinsey told the deputies that he had given a small amount of marijuana to Gonzales because he saw the “in need of weed” sign.
Kinsey said he became nervous and threw his pipe on the ground when security escorted him outside and that he wanted to be honest about his involvement in the situation. He told deputies that he knew he shouldn’t have given marijuana to Gonzales but he was just “trying to help out” according to the arrest report.
Dispatch confirmed that Kinsey had a felony arrest warrant out of Colorado for possession of a firearm but the warrant was non-extraditable.
Because Gonzales is a transient passing through the area, the arresting deputy took him into custody on charges of posession of less than one ounce of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia. His bail was set at $1,864. Kinsey faces charges of drugs for import/sale/schedule 1, a felony, and possession of drug paraphernalia. His bail was set at $21,132.