A Valparaiso resident was arrested Tuesday on a drug charge after the Porter County Sheriff’s Police said that he apparently injected himself with heroin in the men’s room of the Family Express at the intersection of Silhavy Road and LaPorte Ave.

According to police, at 9:51 p.m. an officer was at the Family Express when the clerk reported a suspicious male subject’s having entered the men’s room. The clerk further advised that she was familiar with the subject, that he “often comes inside, then immediately makes his way to the bathroom where he spends an unusual amount of time,” and that after his use of the restroom she has found hypodermic needles in the garbage can, police said.

On this occasion, the clerk found two needles in the garbage can, police said.

The officer observed the subject, identified as Brandon Hoffman, 32, of 308 Arbordale Drive, leave the store, then followed him to a nearby parking lot, where he made contact with Hoffman. “While speaking with (Hoffman), I noticed his speech was very slow and he put a great deal of effort into constructing his sentences,” the officer stated in his report.

The officer asked Hoffman whether he would be willing to roll up his sleeves, Hoffman did so, and the officer observed “‘track marks’ in the crease of both of his arms,” “blood underneath the surface of the skin, and fresh bruising,” police said. The officer asked Hoffman when he had last injected heroin and Hoffman told him “approximately a month ago,” police said. Hoffman also advised that he “regularly drives to Chicago to purchase it,” “adamantly stated he does not sell heroin locally nor could he purchase it locally,” and added that “he was currently in a treatment program for using heroin and was regularly tested,” police said.

When the officer told Hoffman that two needles were just recovered from the Family Express men’s restroom and added that they would be fingerprinted, Hoffman admitted that the needles belonged to him and that he had thrown them in the garbage can on leaving, police said.

Hoffman was taken into custody on a charge of possession of a hypodermic and transported to Porter County Jail. After removing Hoffman from his squad car and remanding him to jail staff, the officer conducted a routine search of his squad’s back seat and recovered there a black drawstring bag containing four hypodermic needles, a burnt spoon with apparent heroin residue, three burnt cotton balls, and six small plastic bags containing 4.5 grams of a white powdery substance which field-tested positive for heroin, police said.

The officer noted in his report that earlier in the day he had cleaned the interior of his squad car, at which time the black drawstring bag was not there, and that no one had been in his squad since that time, police said.

The officer indicated that he is seeking additional charges against Hoffman of possession of heroin and possession of paraphernalia, police said.

Posted 4/25/2012