SPRINGFIELD TOWNSHIP, Ohio (WJW) — Chewy the raccoon is “safe and secure” after he was discovered playing with meth pipes during a traffic stop in Ohio on Monday, police said.
Officers Austin Branham and Ty Klapp with the Springfield Township Police Department detailed the first-of-their-careers encounter Wednesday and explained what will happen to the pet raccoon as his owner now faces felony drug charges.
Chewy, who the officers described as extremely playful, was discovered in Victoria Page-Vidal’s vehicle after the 55-year-old woman was stopped for driving under suspension. She also had an active warrant for her arrest, police said.
After Page-Vidal was detained in a police vehicle, officers returned to her vehicle and found Chewy the raccoon with a meth pipe in his hand.
“Definitely not an everyday thing,” said Officer Branham, whose body camera captured the now-viral incident.
Police said they recovered a bag containing crystal meth, crack cocaine and three used meth pipes from the vehicle.
Meanwhile, Chewy was put into a pet carrier while the Ohio Department of Natural Resources was contacted. The raccoon was then sent home with a family member of Page-Vidal’s family.
It is legal to own a raccoon in the state of Ohio with a proper permit, which Chewy’s owners could not produce, according to police. Now, he will either be re-homed or police will help the family obtain the proper certification to legally own him.
While Chewy was seen in the body-camera video holding one of the pipes to his mouth, police do not believe the animal ingested any drugs.
“The pipes themselves didn’t have any residue inside of them, just the burned amount that was on the outside of it, so there was no inherent risk for Chewy to have exposure,” said Officer Branham.
The unique animal encounter is going viral in a humorous fashion but police are also acknowledging the seriousness of the situation.
“As humorous as it is, having an animal, more of a rabid animal, with drug paraphernalia, you gotta more so think about the driver of the vehicle and her needing the help that she’s gonna get, hopefully that she gets, for her drug issue,” said Officer Klapp. “[Because] it could’ve been a kid rather than a raccoon, so you gotta look at it that way.”
According to police, Page-Vidal told officers that she is currently living out of a home in Akron and her vehicle.
“It is very sad to see someone in that condition with that addiction, that is battling that every day. So that’s why we’ve been in contact with ODNR because we want to make sure that she can get the proper paperwork that she may not be able to afford or obtain because of her current situation.”
Page-Vidal is facing charges of possession of drugs and drug paraphernalia.