Two Elizabethton men face drug charges following a traffic stop early Tuesday morning.

Deputies of the Carter County Sheriff’s Office arrested Dakota Waters, 25, of 1844 W. G St., Elizabethton, and Christopher Raymond, 28, of 518 Johnson Ave., Elizabethton, and charged each of the men with possession of Schedule VI drugs for resale, possession of a firearm during the commission of a dangerous felony, and simple possession of Schedule II drugs. Officers additionally charged Waters with driving on a revoked license and possession of a prohibited weapon.

According to police reports, CCSO Investigator Nick Andes was sitting stationary in the parking lot at the Carter County School Bus Garage when he saw a maroon mini-van pass by and noticed the vehicle’s left tail light was broken.

“As I pulled out of the garage parking lot the van made a very sudden left turn and then another left turn onto Arney Street,” Andes said. “As I gained on the van to initiate a traffic stop it made a quick left into a driveway and stopped.”

When Andes approached the driver’s side of the van, he said he immediately detected “a strong odor of marijuana” emitting from inside of the vehicle.

Andes said when he spoke with Waters, the driver of the van, the man told him his license was suspended.

“I then asked about the strong odor of marijuana emitting from the vehicle. Mr. Waters then advised me that he had smoked some earlier,” Andes said. “I then stated that the smell I was detecting was that of raw marijuana to which Mr. Waters had no answer.”

At that time, Andes placed Waters under arrest and during a pat down search said he found a set of brass knuckles in Waters’ pocket.

Andes then spoke with the passenger in the van, Raymond, who gave officers permission to search him as well. Andes said officers found nothing on Raymond’s person.

During a search of the mini-van, Andes said he found a large bag of raw marijuana that weighed approximately 4.1 ounces and a small pill fob containing a small amount of methamphetamine.

“Behind the passenger seat, I also found a small semi-automatic pistol with four rounds loaded in the clip,” Andes said. “Neither Mr. Waters nor Mr. Raymond claimed possession or knowledge of any of the items located inside of the vehicle which were within an arm’s length of both subjects. Both subjects had large sums of money in their pockets that were in denominations consistent with street level drug sales, tens and twenties.”

Both Waters and Raymond appeared in Carter County General Sessions Court for arraignment on Monday. Judge Keith Bowers appointed the Public Defender’s Office to represent Raymond and appointed attorney Cameron Hyder to represent Waters. Bowers scheduled Waters to return to court on May 15 and Raymond to return to court on May 16.

In court, Bowers revoked Raymond’s bond on a pending case he had before the court. On April 1, Raymond was arrested by the Carter County Sheriff’s Office and charged with public intoxication and possession of a handgun while under the influence. He was released from jail that day after posting a $2,800 bond. Bowers revoked that bond and ordered Raymond be held without bond in both cases.