Intensive investigations in Kerr County have led to the arrest of a fugitive and multiple drug charges. Community safety hinges on these persistent efforts.
KERR COUNTY, Texas — A series of investigations by authorities in Kerr County led to multiple arrests this week, including the capture of a wanted fugitive and several drug-related charges across Kerr and Kendall counties.
On Dec. 1, investigators received information that Eugene Washington Jr., 45, of Kerrville, was at an apartment complex in the 500 block of Sunflower in Comfort. Investigators monitored the location and watched Washington leave the complex and drive to a nearby gas station on U.S. Highway 87. Deputies with the Kendall County Sheriff’s Office (KCSO) made contact at the gas station and took him into custody on a warrant issued by the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles.
Two days later, on Dec. 3, investigators pursued a separate tip involving drug sales in Kerr County. During the investigation, deputies with KCSO conducted a traffic stop on Joseph Paul Turnage, 39, of Center Point. Turnage admitted to having meth hidden inside a child’s toy, investigators said. Deputies recovered about 19 grams of methamphetamine, and he was arrested and booked into the Kerr County Jail on a charge of Manufacture/Delivery of a Controlled Substance. His bond was set at $75,000.
A ongoing investigation also led authorities to a home in the 500 block of Stoneleigh Road, where several occupants were suspected of possessing methamphetamine. After securing a search warrant, the KCSO Special Response Team searched the home and found that two men were in possession of meth. Travis Dale Burlew, 37, and Noel Dean Pursley, 53, both of Center Point, were arrested on charges of Possession of a Controlled Substance. Deputies say both men were also found with drug paraphernalia. Pursley was additionally booked on a Failure to Appear warrant. Burlew’s bond was set at $45,000, and Pursley’s at $35,000.
“Our investigative team does relentless work throughout Kerr County, and collaborates seamlessly with outside agencies,” said Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha. “Whether securing a fugitive from the justice system or helping those in the drug trade encounter the justice system, the citizens of Kerr County are safer every single day through the work of our investigators and SOD.”
Officials note that charges can be modified before trial and that all suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty.