Two Arrested After Heroin Found During Traffic Stop

Two Cookeville residents were arrested Wednesday night after police found heroin during a traffic stop.

Arrest warrants state 53-year-old Laura Sue Pariso and 38-year-old Amber Simpson were charged for tampering with evidence and delivering or selling a controlled substance.

Simpson and Pariso were driving on Gainesboro Grade when a Cookeville Police officer recognized Pariso for having outstanding warrants.

The officer noticed Pariso pull something from her pants and asked the women to step out of the vehicle. That’s when the officer noticed an SD cardholder in the roadway containing approximately half a gram of heroin.

Warrants state the substance was wrapped in paper that the officer matched to a calendar in Simpson’s purse with her name on it.

Neither Simpson and Pariso denied knowing how the substance got there and were considered parties to the crime. Both are being held at the Putnam County Jail with Simpson under $25,000 bond and Pariso under $12,500 bond.

The women are scheduled to appear in court on May 13.