Wheaton man allegedly in possession of 77 grams of meth

By Kyle Troutman [email protected]

A Wheaton man is facing three felony charges in two cases after being served a warrant and allegedly being in possession of meth, pills and cash.

Jeffrey Stout, 45, of Wheaton, is charged in one case with delivery of a controlled substance and unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia, and with delivery of a controlled substance in another.

According to a probable cause statement filed by Det. Abby Parsons, with the Barry County Sheriff’s Office, authorities were dispatched on Dec. 10 to a residence in Barry County for a male subject with a felony warrant.

According to a Sheriff’s office press release, the house was in the Wheaton area, and Stout initially refused to exit the residence. After additional personnel arrived on scene, Stout willingly exited the home and was taken into custody on the warrant without incident.

According to Parsons’ statement, during an ensuing search of the residence, deputies allegedly located two bags of a crystal-like substance, a digital scale, three smoking devices commonly used to smoke methamphetamine, two spoons with white residue, three clear baggies commonly used to distribute illegal substances, a baggie containing 52 unknown white pills and currency totaling $4,164.

Stout was booked into the jail with currency totaling $1,008. During a search of a vehicle on the property, a baggie containing 38 unknown pills was allegedly located.

The crystal-like substance in the bags in the home tested positive for the presence of methamphetamine and a scale at the Sheriff’s Office showed a weight of 77 grams.

The felony warrant authorities served stemmed from a traffic stop in Cassville on Sept. 29. Stout was a passenger in the vehicle, and after being informed the vehicle was was to be towed for displaying an expired license plate, he left on foot.

Before the towing occurred, an inventory of the vehicle was conducted, during which a bag containing a white crystal-like substance was allegedly located submerged in liquid in a tumbler cup in the center console cup holder. The substance allegedly tested positive for methamphetamine.

The driver was later arrested, but Stout was unable to be located. On Oct. 8, the driver agreed to an interview with a detective at the Sheriff’s Office. The driver said she encountered Stout while he was walking in the Eagle Rock area and offered him a ride, which he accepted. 

The driver said Stout mentioned needing to go to Cassville, but their first stop was a location in Eagle Rock, and she noted Stout did not have the tumbler when he first entered the vehicle but she did notice it in the center console after the stop and claimed it belonged to Stout.

A scale at the Sheriff’s Office showed a the substance in the tumbler weighed more than 90 grams.

Stout is being held in the Barry County jail on two cash-only bonds, $100,000 in the new case following the search of the residence, and $25,000 in the case for which the warrant was served.

Preliminary hearings are scheduled for both cases on Jan. 29, 2026, at 1 p.m. in the courtroom of Judge Johnnie Cox. Both cases received change of judge orders transferring them from Judge Robert Foulke to Judge Cox to avoid the appearance of impropriety.