The allegations sound like a storyline from “Breaking Bad” or “Better Call Saul."
While only about 35 minutes north of Waco, the small Texas town of Clifton is made up of a population of about 3,500, most of whom work in the farming and ranching industries. But the police force there was more than ready to take on a alleged meth ring operating, in part, out of the local Dairy Queen, Police Chief Chris Blanton tells Inside Edition Digital.
“We're a small town police department, but we're not a bunch of idiots," says Blanton, who was born and raised in Clifton, which he describes as "kind of off the beaten path." "We're not a bunch of small town cops. We've got a good police force. We've got a very observant police force. Don't come to Clifton and try to be an urban entrepreneur and try to open your meth business in Clifton and think that we're going to allow it,” he says.
In what has been dubbed by authorities as "Operation Blizzard," Blanton's nine-person police force on Jan. 26 arrested 10 people officials say were part of a drug ring selling methamphetamine. Two of the 10 suspects worked at the Dairy Queen in Clifton. During their brief employment there, they allegedly sold meth out of the fast food chain known for its burgers and ice cream, Blanton says.
In a statement to Inside Edition Digital, American Dairy Queen Corporation says, "There is no place for illegal activity at DQ restaurants. We strongly condemn the alleged activities which are not aligned with our mission and values. The restaurant located in Clifton, Texas is independently owned and operated, and all staff are employed by the franchise owner. Of the ten people arrested, we understand that two allegedly involved were formerly employed at the Clifton location."
"I would be lying to you if you don't get a little adrenaline rush and you get a little excited because what you're trying to do is successful," Blanton says.
Police launched their investigation in June after they say they received several anonymous complaints about drug dealers operating in the town.
"We had some anonymous complaints, just some hearsay really is what it was that these particular individuals, not necessarily at Dairy Queen, but these particular individuals were selling methamphetamines,” he says. “I've got a few good young officers that developed some confidential informants and just started doing the legwork, getting out and talking to people and kind of some old school police work."
The two suspects who worked at Dairy Queen were only employed there for a few months, according to Blanton. "You go in one week [to Dairy Queen] and you go in the next week, and the people that were there before are not there. So that was a good thing that they only worked there about two months, three months into this, and then they quit and weren't there anymore," he says.
The drugs were also being sold out of homes in the area, including to undercover officers, Blanton says.
“These people sold meth multiple times to us over and over and over. It's a pattern of behavior. It's not, ‘man, I just did this. I'm not a bad person.’ These are drug dealers, period,” he says. “We actually had our undercovers buy from them several times at Dairy Queen. And then after they quit Dairy Queen, we actually bought drugs at the drug house they were living in over the course of the next several months. And then we got arrest warrants, but we held onto them until we finished our investigation. Then when we served the search warrants, that's where we arrested them, which was five or six, seven months later.”
Clifton police named the suspects in a lengthy Facebook post on Jan. 26, the day of the bust.
The 10 suspects all face different charges. None of the suspects have entered pleas, nor have they been arraigned. They all have been issued bonds, but only three of the 10 suspects have bonded out, according to Blanton. Inside Edition Digital has reached out to the Bosque County District Attorney Office and criminal court clerk for more information. It remains unknown if the suspects have obtained legal representation.
Bradley Calderon was charged with three counts of manufacturing or delivering a controlled substance. Raven Choquette was charged with manufacturing or delivering a controlled substance. Autumn Crawford was charged with engaging in organized criminal activity. Shelby Sedberry was charged with two counts of manufacturing or delivering a controlled substance in a drug-free zone, and three additional counts of manufacturing and delivering a controlled substance in a drug-free zone. Angela Lorin Meissner was charged with manufacturing or delivering a controlled substance in a drug-free zone. Charles Smith and was charged with manufacturing or delivering a controlled substance in a drug-free zone. Adrian Bernard Edwards was charged with four counts of manufacturing or delivering a controlled substance in a drug-free zone.
Neal Cook III was charged with possession of controlled substance in drug-free zone. Ronnie Watley was charged with possession of controlled substance in drug-free zone. Duane Sorensen was charged with manufacturing or delivering a controlled substance in a drug-free zone. Cook, Watley and Sorensen have bonded out, Blanton says.
Clifton has seen some homicides in the past, but a drug bust of this magnitude was previously unheard of in the community.
"Methamphetamine is a pretty common of the bad drugs, so to speak," he says. "That's not to say we have a huge problem with it. It's not like you walk down the street and ‘Oh, there's a bag of meth on the ground.’ It's not like that. But any town that says they don't have a drug problem is full of it because every town in America has got a drug problem. Some are worse than others. Ours here is mainly a user level drug problem, but we do have a few people who are 'dealers.' We're not talking Heisenberg or manufacturers or anything like that.
“No, Clifton's not known for the drug capital of Texas and anything like that. It's a retirement community. It's like a fifty-fifty of older retired folks and younger folks,” he continues. "Everybody talks to everybody. And so eventually we'll come busting through your door if you're selling drugs. So my advice would be don't sell drugs and don't use drugs at all. But that's probably not going to happen, so don't do it at Clifton, do it somewhere else."
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