Broome County man allegedly received shipment of meth at Alexandria Bay package store

Oct. 14—ALEXANDRIA BAY — A Broome County man faces federal charges that he had crystal methamphetamine shipped from California to a location in the town of Alexandria.

Adam Baldwin, age and address not available, was charged Tuesday in U.S. District Court, Syracuse, with possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance.

According to a criminal complaint filed with the court, a detective with the Santa Anna Police Department in California was informed Oct. 7 by UPS that a package due to be shipped from a UPS Store in that city allegedly contained two pounds of methamphetamine. The recipient was listed as Adam Baldwin with an address of the UPS Store on Route 12 in Alexandria Bay.

On Saturday, a federal agent and a detective with the Metro-Jefferson Drug Task Force were notified that a second package addressed to "Mr. Baldwin" had been delivered to the Alexandria Bay UPS Store. Through a partial opening in the package, the task force detective was able to see what appeared to be a stuffed animal inside. A K-9 narcotics detector conducted a free air sniff and alerted on the package, prompting the detective to obtain a search warrant for the package from Watertown City Court Judge Anthony Neddo.

According to the complaint, a vacuum-sealed plastic package was found inside a slit in the neck of a stuffed animal, with the slit covered up with tape.

The contents of the package allegedly tested positive for methamphetamine. The drugs were removed from the package and a similar weight of noncontraband was put back in the package and it was resealed.

On Tuesday, law enforcement surveilled the UPS Store on Route 12 and saw a male in a white pickup truck park in the lot and enter the store. Employees told police that he asked for two packages, one delivered Saturday and the second that had been seized Oct. 7 in California. When informed the second package had not arrived, Mr. Baldwin asked how to file a claim for the missing package and was provided a phone number.

A federal agent observed Mr. Baldwin put the other package he picked up in the bed of his truck. He left Alexandria Bay along Interstate 81 southbound, followed by law enforcement. When he pulled over apparently to fix a loose tarp in a bed on a trailer he was towing, a marked Jefferson County sheriff's deputy pulled behind him to ask why he had pulled over.

At that point, Mr. Balwdin, who was traveling with a female and two minors, was taken into custody. At the Metro-Jefferson Public Safety Building, he allegedly admitted that an unidentified person had called him and offered to pay him to deliver the package to another unidentified person. He allegedly told police he had previously received and delivered two other packages that he believed contained one pound of methamphetamine.

He made an initial appearance Tuesday in federal court. His custody status was not available.