Five arrested for drug-related incidents in Oneida County over the weekend

Five people were arrested in Oneida County this past weekend for a variety of drug-related incidents. 

Travis Jeffery Brooks, 40, of Rhinelander, was arrested by the Oneida County Sheriff’s Office on July 18 for charges including: possession of THC, possession of methamphetamine, possession of drug paraphernalia and possession of a controlled substance.

Minogheezhig Sandman-Shelifoe, 41, of Rhinelander, was arrested by the Oneida County Sheriff’s Office after being medically cleared on July 19 for charges including: possession of drug paraphernalia, second or greater offense of possession of cocaine and two charges of possession of heroin and fentanyl. 

Amy Catherine Bock, 29, of Rhinelander, and Karen Ann LaPuma, 59, of Rhinelander, were both arrested by the Rhinelander Police Department on July 19 in a related incident. Bock was arrested for charges including: possession of drug paraphernalia, possession of methamphetamine, possession of a controlled substance and a probation violation. LaPuma was arrested for charges including: possession of drug paraphernalia, possession of methamphetamine, possession of an illegally obtained prescription drug and harboring and aiding a felon with intent to prevent apprehension.

Matthew John Roberts, 38, of Rhinelander, was arrested by the Oneida County Sheriff’s Office on July 20 for charges including: possession of cocaine, possession of THC, possession of drug paraphernalia, possession of an illegally obtained prescription drug, operating with a revoked license and two counts of misdemeanor bail jumping.

Oneida County Sheriff's Office captain Robert Hebein spoke with The Lakeland Times and The Northwoods River News Tuesday. 

He indicated the amount of arrests this past weekend for illegal narcotics, particularly including methamphetamine, isn’t unusual. 

Hebein said the sheriff’s office has placed an emphasis on enforcing the “hard drugs” and curbing this type of drug use in the county. 

“Whether it be methamphetamine, fentanyl, heroine, things like that,” he said. “So yes, it is one of the top priorities at our sheriff’s office.”

As far as progress goes, Hebein said law enforcement officers do everything in their authority to “aggressively deal with the drug problem.”

“But there are certain things out of our control,” he said. “We certainly do see (repeat offenders) and some of that is not under our control. We can only do the enforcement and the referrals.”

Hard drugs are a significant challenge the county faces, especially when it comes to methamphetamine. 

Hebein said it’s “absolutely horrible for our community” because it not only negatively impacts the users of those drugs, but family members and other community members too.

“There’s a greater problem other than the person that’s arrested,” he said. “It does lead over to other aspects of the community.”

Trevor Greene may be reached via email at [email protected].