Felony Drug Arrest Made Following Wilmington Traffic Stop

State of DE - On March 29, 2026, the Delaware State Police arrested 55-year-old James Pyrtle of Whitsett, North Carolina. The arrest followed a traffic stop in Wilmington and resulted in felony drug charges.

At approximately 11:00 a.m., a trooper was patrolling Interstate 95 southbound near Marsh Road. The trooper observed a Ford Edge with a registration violation. A traffic stop was initiated, and the trooper made contact with the driver, identified as Pyrtle.

During the interaction, the trooper suspected drug trafficking activity. A New Castle County Police narcotics K9 was requested to the scene. The K9 subsequently alerted to the presence of narcotics inside the vehicle.

A search of the Ford Edge was conducted by law enforcement. The search resulted in the recovery of approximately 2,287 grams of suspected cocaine. Additional substances recovered included six oxycodone hydrochloride pills, three tramadol hydrochloride pills, and three alprazolam pills.

Pyrtle was taken into custody and transported to Troop 1. He was charged with Possession of a Controlled Substance Tier 3 Quantity (Felony), Possession with the Intent to Deliver a Controlled Substance Tier 3 Quantity (Felony), four counts of Possession of a Controlled Substance, and Expired Tags.

He was arraigned by Justice of the Peace Court 11 and committed to the Howard R. Young Correctional Institution on a $120,801 cash bond.

Disclosure: All individuals mentioned in this article are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Eastern Shore Undercover® does not express or imply any opinion regarding the incident reported.