Bowling Green State University head swimming and diving coach Matthew Ense was arrested Monday after cops found a marijuana edible in his car, then caught him attempting to ingest it to hide it from them, according to Ohio Highway Patrol (first reported by the Toledo Blade Tuesday)
Ense, 38, and his girlfriend were pulled over in a car on the side of the I-475 in Bowling Green, Ohio, and cops approached the car to see why they were stopped. They learned that Ense had thrown his girlfriend’s phone out the window while she was attempting to call 911. It’s unclear at this point why she was making the call.
Highway patrol searched the car, found the marijuana edible, and Ense was arrested. However, some time between being arrested and put into the police car, he attempted to ingest the edible.
“Prior to being placed in the car, the suspect attempted to ingest the contraband,” the police report states. “Only the amount of force necessary was used to stop the suspect from ingesting the contraband.”
He is being charged with tampering with evidence (third-degree felony), disrupting an emergency communication (fourth-degree felony), obstructing justice (misdemeanor), and a minor misdemeanor for possession of marijuana. He posted $10,000 bond Monday night from Lucas County jail.
Ense joined Bowling Green, a Division I program, as head coach three years ago. He was placed on administrative leave Tuesday after a reporter from the Blade inquired with the school about his arrest.
“Bowling Green State University has high expectations for its employees, at work, and in the community,” a university spokesman said in a statement to the Blade. “We were made aware today of the weekend arrest of Matthew Ense, head swimming and diving coach, and are reviewing the facts. Pending the outcome of our investigation, Coach Ense has been placed on administrative leave.”
Ense is scheduled to appear again in Sylvania Municipal Court on Friday. SwimSwam has reached out to the school for further information.
wpDiscuz
Uh oh
Bowling green is in Ohio!
There is a Bowling Green Kentucky also
Now known as Western Kentucky Univ
Seems like a pretty major offense for possession of an edible (which is legal in many states now)
The marijuana procession was just a misdemeanor
^^that’s correct. The felony charges are for the allegations of destroying the evidence of a misdemeanor and throwing his girlfriends phone out the window when she tried to call 9-1-1.
lmao he tweaked. its decriminalized in ohio