Authorities in Texas declared a man wanted after he allegedly hid marijuana in Easter eggs, left them in locations around the city, and initiated a scavenger hunt for them.
Per Local 10, the wanted man, identified as Avante Nicholson, allegedly took to Facebook to share tips on how to locate the marijuana he had hidden in the Easter eggs.
In a statement, the Lufkin Police Department said that Nicholson hid the marijuana-stuffed Easter eggs in three city parks and a local motel on April 20. Authorities also said a resident sent them a tip after seeing posts about the said scavenger hunt on Facebook.
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Authorities said responding officers ultimately found three of the eggs in Morris Frank, Winston, and Grace Dunn Richardson parks, adding that the fourth one was located behind Motel 6.
“The suspect posted four photos on Facebook showing each location as hints to locate the eggs. He also posted a photo of five plastic eggs in the seat of a vehicle. Officers found four eggs and believed he had not placed the fifth,” the statement said.
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Authorities, however, clarified that a man and his granddaughter ultimately located the fifth egg at Winston Park on April 21 and took it to the police station.
“The deliveries totaled more than a quarter of an ounce of marijuana,” the statement said. “After a deeper search of the suspect’s Facebook page, officers were able to positively identify Nicholson as the Facebook page owner. They also found statements referencing selling narcotics on multiple occasions and in the posts, he stated whoever ‘shopped’ with him the day of the scavenger hunt would get hints to the locations of the eggs.”
The Lufkin Police Department in their statement said that four warrants had been issued for the suspect. “Three of the warrants are Felony 3, delivery of marijuana in a drug-free zone and the fourth is a state jail felony for delivery of marijuana,” the statement said.
“Incidents like this are a reminder of why take seriously all information called in to our offices,” Lufkin Police Chief David Thomas said. “On the surface, it seems implausible that someone would give away a drug, but the follow up proves that sometimes even the most unlikely things do happen.”
Thomas added: “The safety of our community is at the forefront of everything we do. And in cases such as this, when it endangers children, we are even more vigilant.”
