Photo: John Bass. Photo: Courtesy Ozark County Times
An Ozark County man will spend the next 10 years in prison after admitting to a drug-dealing operation and to violating his probation in three other cases. Fifty-two-year-old John Bass of Caulfield was sentenced Oct. 9 by Circuit Judge Craig Carter after pleading guilty to trafficking a controlled substance.
According to the Ozark County Times, an Ozark County deputy says in a probable cause statement officers executed a search warrant July 22 at Bass’ residence on Gene Bean Drive. Ozark County authorities had received notification from the Howell County Sheriff’s Office three days earlier of a burglary in Caulfield. The missing items included hand tools, a welder, a single-axle trailer, a tractor battery, tackle boxes, fishing equipment, chainsaws, a tall battery charger, a stereo, rings, other jewelry and other household items.
Two days later, a person arrested on an unrelated Ozark County warrant claimed to have information on burglaries in Howell County. The individual claimed to be with a friend who met with Bass July 19 at his residence in Caulfield. The individual alleges the friend gave Bass several items taken from a Howell County residence in exchange for a quantity of methamphetamine. The individual claims to have witnessed Bass exchange methamphetamine for stolen goods on several occasions, and the drugs and stolen items were all kept at his residence.
Ozark County deputies reportedly located three baggies containing a white crystal substance, empty baggies, a metric scale and other paraphernalia on top of a dresser. The substance field tested positive for methamphetamine. On a non-certified scale, the three bags reportedly had a total weight of nearly 3.4 ounces, equating to a total of over 98 grams. The deputy hypothesized in his report the methamphetamine had a street retail value approaching $20,000.
During the search, Bass reportedly contacted the reporting deputy through a friend and agreed to return to his residence and turn himself in. Bass arrived and reportedly surrendered the items described by the witness located in a bedroom and in the trunk of a vehicle. Bass stated his wife had nothing to do with the stolen items or the drugs.
The probation terms Bass admitted to violating are in connection with a case in which he pleaded guilty to two counts of possession of a controlled substance and assault in November 2016. He was given a suspended execution of sentence and ordered to complete a 120-day institutional drug treatment program. He was placed on supervised probation for five years, and he completed the program in September 2018. Judge Carter ordered the original 10-year backup sentences in those cases to be executed. Those sentences will run concurrently with the new 10-year sentence.
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