State Attorney Ed Brodsky announced today that John Henry Chase was convicted after jury trial of Trafficking in Methamphetamine (28 grams or More).  The crime was committed on January 3, 2023 and investigated by Sarasota Sheriff’s Office.  The trial was held at the Sarasota County Courthouse on January 13, 2026.

The crimes carry a maximum possible sentence of 30 years in State prison.

The minimum mandatory sentence is 7 years in State Prison.

Sentencing is scheduled for TBD.

Defendant John Henry Chase was observed by a detective from the Sheriff’s Office Special Investigation Section in a Fairfield Inn parking lot on Jacaranda Blvd. having a suspicious interaction in a black Mercedes with convicted methamphetamine trafficker Brian Neu.  Officers followed the defendant and later conducted a traffic stop of his vehicle on I-75 around mile marker 210.  A K-9 sniff was conducted by the Sheriff’s Office K-9 Unit on the vehicle and the K-9 alerted to narcotics being in the vehicle.  At that time the Sheriff’s Office’s TAC Unit (or Tactical Unit) arrived and conducted a search of the vehicle and the defendant. 

Multiple bags containing a trafficking quantity of methamphetamine were located on the defendant. At trial, defense argued that this was temporary possession because the drugs were actually for the female passenger in the vehicle. In second closing, Assistant State Attorney Liana Whipple argued that there was nothing unintentional about this. Defendant bought the drugs, strapped them to his own groin and intended to sell a portion of the drugs. Even if he did provide or intent to provide a portion of the drugs to the passenger, that’s not exculpatory. That is trafficking in methamphetamine!   

The lead prosecutor in the case, Assistant State Attorney Nicholas Lata commented, “We are pleased the jury held the defendant accountable and grateful for the incredible work of the Sarasota Sheriff’s Office on this case. They employed three separate units on a moment’s notice to build an excellent case against the defendant.  When trafficking quantities of drugs are on the move, law enforcement does not have long to act before drugs are concealed or transferred again.  We will keep the names of the individual officers and detectives private due to the nature of this case and the undercover work they do, but we are grateful for their hard work protecting this community. We are pleased to see overdose deaths down nearly 50% this year across the country as compared to last year and that progress is only possible due to officers like these working to get these drugs off our streets.”

If you have any questions or would like further information please contact Assistant State Attorney Nicholas Lata in the Sarasota County office at 941-861-4400.