TN Deputy 'OK' After Being Dragged During Bust

Hamblen County, TN, Deputy Bradley Gilmer, a narcotics investigator, escaped injury Thursday after he was dragged for about 30 feet down South Cumberland Street by an alleged crystal-meth dealer who was making an impromptu, high-speed getaway, authorities say.

Hamblen County, TN, Deputy Bradley Gilmer, a narcotics investigator, escaped injury Thursday after he was dragged for about 30 feet down South Cumberland Street by an alleged crystal-meth dealer who was making an impromptu, high-speed getaway, authorities say.

"He's OK," Detective Lt. Eric Carson said this morning. "It scared him. He thought he was going to get run over. It was close, it was scary."

The alleged meth dealer, 53-year-old Lester Mark Bell, was taken into custody a short time later at his sister's residence on Shields Ferry Road. Two passengers in Ball's vehicle that he left behind on South Cumberland Street gave the defendant up, according to Carson.

Ball faces charges of aggravated assault, possession of meth for resale, evading arrest, reckless endangerment failure to exercise due care and running a stop sign. He remained in the Hamblen County Jail this morning in lieu of $250,000 bond, reports the Citizen Tribune.

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