More than a year after he and his wife were fired from an Indiana sheriff’s office for a scandal involving $250,000 that went missing, the former deputy was arrested for having used his patrol car to protect a massive drug operation while he was still employed.
And that comes just more than a year after Jason Wood and his wife, Teresa, were arrested for possession of synthetic drugs, specifically Spice, a synthetic type of marijuana that was made illegal in 2012 after it was proven to be much more dangerous than natural marijuana.
In his [__latest arrest last week__](http://www.indystar.com/story/news/crime/2016/01/15/ex-hancock-county-deputy-arrested-drug-charges/78837206/?from=global&sessionKey=&autologin=), Jason was charged with six felonies, including bribery, dealing a synthetic drug, official misconduct and other crimes related to an international smuggling conspiracy stretching from [__factories in China__](http://www.vice.com/read/visiting-the-factories-in-china-where-synthetic-marijuana-gets-made) to farms in Indiana.
Teresa was not charged last week but that can always change in the slow-moving judicial system of the Hoosier State.
Both Jason and Teresa were fired from the Hendricks County Sheriff’s Office in 2014 over a questionable exchange of money, according to a March 27, 2014 [__local news article.__](http://fox59.com/2014/03/27/missing-250k-at-center-of-case-involving-husband-wife-deputies/)
> A missing stash of $250,000 is behind the suspension and possible termination of a husband and wife deputy team in Hendricks County.
> Jason and Teresa Woods face four department violations including conduct unbecoming. According to Sheriff Dave Galloway, the couple agreed to hold $250,000 for a friend. They were then told to meet someone to give the money back. Jason Woods said he made the exchange; the other person said he never received the money.
> Criminal charges are being investigated by an outside agency. The incident occurred in Marion County in October 2013.
The couple were members of a Baptist church founded by a man named Robert Jaynes, Jr., a fundamentalist preacher who also oversaw the operation of the synthetic drugs. Jaynes is also facing charges along with many others. Check him out in the video below.
The Indianapolis Star published an in-depth investigative piece last year, describing the operation as a ” [__real-life Indiana version of ‘Breaking Bad’ involving millions of dollars in illegal drugs.”__](http://www.indystar.com/story/news/crime/2015/10/31/indystar-investigation-indys-spice-road/73518868/)
Hancock County prosecutor Brent Eaton, who has been investigating the operation for more than a year, released a statement confirming that Woods did in fact escort the drug supply and also used his patrol car to do so and to protect others involved in the scheme.
Investigators say they found more than 1,300 pounds of synthetic drugs in a home.
“Mr. Woods, while he was Sheriff’s Deputy, did provide security and assistance to this conspiracy to deal narcotics,” Eaton said.
Eaton adds that others arrested who were also involved in the drug operation implicated Woods, who apparently received gifts and flew out to Phoenix and Las Vegas back in 2013 and 2014, as a reward for helping transport the drugs and offering others involved protection from other cops.
“The idea was that if a police officer was behind them while they transported the product they would be protected,” an unidentified suspect said according to court documents.
“Mr. Woods benefited with trips to places around the United States as a result of his involvement with the conspiracy,” Eaton added.
Back in 2014 when Woods and his wife were arrested, law enforcement officials found synthetic drugs and cash stashed away in a safe.
“I know that Hendricks County terminated Mr. Woods in 2014, so he no longer works in law enforcement, but he did when these acts occurred and anytime that happens we take that seriously,” said Eaton.
The missing $250,000 is still not accounted for but investigators believe it was part of the illegal operation, so they do not appear too concerned about it right now.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Esp5EaTXoVU&feature=youtu.be
