Russell Miller

ADAMS TWP — Police seized 245 bags of suspected heroin and hundreds of dollars in currency following a traffic stop Wednesday night.

Russell A. Miller, 23, of Middlesex Township is in Butler County Prison on felony and misdemeanor drug possession charges. He is being held on $50,000 bail.

Adams Township police said Miller was a passenger in a car they spotted speeding about 10:50 p.m. on Ridge Road. They stopped the vehicle at Hayes and George streets.

The driver, who owns the vehicle, gave officers permission to search the car. Inside, according to court documents, they found what appeared to be drug contraband.

Both the driver and Miller denied ownership of the items.

During a pat-down, patrolman Christopher Kopas turned up five “bricks” of suspected heroin on Miller, documents state. A brick of heroin is commonly equal to 50 glassine bags.

Police said they took Miller to the station and counted out the 245 stamp bags of suspected heroin they found on him. The bags were stamped with the name “CHANEL” in blue ink

They also found $261 in his wallet. Some of the bills, Kopas noted, appeared to have white powder on them.

The wallet also contained an open package of Suboxone, which is a narcotic-based drug prescribed to treat addiction to heroin and powerful painkillers such as oxycodone. Miller did not have a prescription for the drug.

Kopas said he also ran Miller's criminal record that revealed a history of drug violations. Among his convictions, records showed, were three for felony drug possession.

Miller was later arraigned on charges of possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance, two counts of possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia.

In addition to his bail, he is being held in the county prison on a probation detainer.

Miller's preliminary hearing is set Jan. 23 at the office of District Judge Wayne Seibel in Evans City.