Man is arrested twice in one day and faces drug, other charges

Felony drug charges have landed a Carbon County man in the Lehigh County Jail.

Derick Lee Hymans, 26, who gave officers home addresses in Lehighton and Palmerton, was arrested early Sunday morning in Allentown with charges that include possession with the intent to manufacture, package and distribute methamphetamine and fentanyl.

He posted the $25,000 bail on Monday, but was arrested again the same day, allegedly for additional drug offenses. On Tuesday, auto theft charges were also filed and his earlier bail was revoked. It is now set at $250,000.

Around 1:30 a.m. on Sunday, an Allentown police officer was searching for a blue Honda CR-V that had allegedly fled a traffic stop. The officer said he saw the vehicle traveling south in the 300 block of Grant Street with its headlights off.

He pulled over the small SUV, and the driver, later identified as Hymans, got out of the vehicle and went around to the passenger side. The officer said he found Hymans lying on the ground next to another car parked beside his vehicle. About 12 inches in front of Hymans, the officer said he saw a plastic bag containing another bag with semi-clear crystal substance in it, a bag with a light brown powder, a bag with a green-colored vegetablelike substance, six blue wax paper baggies with light brown powder, a bag with empty small plastic baggies and empty wax paper baggies.

The officer said he found $1,445 and a cellphone on Hymans. And in his vehicle, he found three more cellphones. The officer discovered that Hymans was driving on a suspended license.

Hymans was arrested and charged with nine offenses including two felony charges for manufacture, delivery or possession with intent to manufacture or deliver; four misdemeanors involving possession of drug paraphernalia and a small amount of marijuana; and three safety violations involving driving without lights, driving with a suspended license and driving without light to avoid detection by police.

After he was arraigned before Magisterial District Judge Karen Devine, Hymans posted bail on Monday, but was arrested again in Allentown around 8 p.m. that same day. This time, two Allentown officers were on patrol when they saw Hymans’ blue Honda CR-V. They said they were unable to see through the dark black tint on the side windows and back windshields.

The officers said they saw Hymans get out of his vehicle at a stop light at Seventh and Greenleaf streets and yell something to a vehicle behind him. When they made a stop, the car quickly parked and officers said they saw Hymans get out, go around to the front of the car, bend down and throw something under the car in front of it.

Police said when they approached Hymans, he said, “That’s not mine,” before any evidence was found.

The police looked under the vehicle and found a clear sandwich bag with about 24 grams of marijuana in it.

Police said they smelled a strong odor of marijuana on him and coming from his vehicle. They searched the vehicle and found multiple clear unused sandwich bags in between the driver and passenger seats, as well as two cellphones, one on Hymans and one in the vehicle.

Hymans was arrested and charged with one felony for manufacture, delivery or possession with intent to manufacture or deliver; three misdemeanors for tampering with physical evidence, possession of drug paraphernalia and a small amount of marijuana; and two safety violations for obstructed windows and driving with a suspended license.

Hymans was brought before Magisterial District Judge Patricia Engler. Because of the second arrest within hours of posting bail, Engler revoked the earlier bail and set bail at $250,000.

On Sunday following the initial arrest, a search of Hymans’ vehicle by an Allentown police officer in the Lehigh County Auto Theft Task Force and a Special County Detective for the Lehigh County District Attorneys Office yielded a key ring with 12 Honda-style car keys on it. The officer tested the keys, and six of them were able to open older models of Honda and Acura vehicles. A misdemeanor charge related to possession, manufacturing and distributing of master keys was filed.

Hymans has a preliminary hearing scheduled for Feb. 25 before Magisterial District Judge Ronald Manescu and a second preliminary hearing on Feb. 26 before Judge Engler. He was sent to Lehigh County Jail and was unable to post bail.