GALLIPOLIS - A 29-year-old Bidwell man faces felony charges following a drug bust Thursday night in the parking lot of the Budget Inn on Jackson Pike.

William C. “Bill” Burns, was arraigned in Gallipolis Municipal Court on Friday and charged with one count of drug abuse and one count of carrying a concealed weapon. Both are felonies.

Burns remained in the Gallia County Jail as of press time.

According to Capt. John Perry of the Gallia County Sheriff's Department, the arrest was the end result of a traffic stop performed by Deputy Fred Workman with the assistance of Trooper Nick Hoffman of the Gallia-Meigs Post of the State Highway Patrol.

Burns allegedly admitted to having a loaded firearm in his vehicle when authorities made contact and a subsequent search of the vehicle allegedly produced what appeared to be 25 grams of crack cocaine, which has an estimated street value of $2,500, and a small amount of cash.

As a result of the investigation, sheriff's investigators obtained a search warrant for Burns' room at the Budget Inn, but little additional evidence was found.

“The sheriff's office had received numerous tips from the public that Burns had been allegedly trafficking in drugs out of the room at the Budget Inn for the past several weeks,” said Perry. “This bust is evidence that assistance from the public is invaluable in making our community safer.”

Perry urges the public to continue to call in their tips about illicit activity to the sheriff's tip-line at (740) 446-6555 or submit tips on-line at www.galliasheriff.org.

The arrest is the second hotel related drug bust in Gallia County to occur this month.

On Jan. 5, Gallipolis City Police confiscated $18,883 of suspected drug money during a search of two rooms at the Super 8 Motel on Upper River Road after officers received reports of suspected drug activity.

While the names of the suspects have been withheld pending the completion of that investigation, police did say one suspect is a Pomeroy resident and the other is a Detroit, Michigan resident.