Heroin, crack cocaine uncovered in Walmart parking lot

Deputies: Couple had hundreds of baggies ready for sale

ORLANDO, Fla. – Two people are behind bars charged, with possessing and planning to sell heroin, crack cocaine and other drugs in the parking lot of a local Walmart.

Orange County sheriff's deputies told News 6 an off-duty deputy was working to get rid of people sleeping in their cars at the Walmart at the corner of South John Young Parkway and Sand Lake Road on Monday morning.

She said she came across Andres Espinosa, 29, and Amanda Lopez, 25, and they appeared to have a baggie full of drugs inside their car. She said she called for backup.

"He (Espinosa) started acting fidgety," sheriff's spokeswoman Jane Watrel said. "He told her that his car is broken down. She didn't buy it. She saw the drugs. She turned off the car and took the keys."

At one point, she said Espinosa reached for a gun before crawling over his girlfriend in the passenger seat and running across the parking lot to get away.

Backup deputies nabbed him near the Discount Tire, Watrel said.

Inside the car, investigators found 169 baggies of heroin, more than 100 baggies of crack cocaine, bottles of steroids and testosterone, syringes and two stolen guns.

One of the guns, a 9mm Glock semi-automatic, was reported stolen out of Kissimmee, according to Espinosa's arrest report. The other, a .40 caliber Smith and Wesson, was reported stolen out of Orange County.

Espinosa and Lopez were both arrested and taken to the Orange County Jail, where they face a long list of drug charges and weapons charges.

Espinosa is being held on no bond.

"We're glad you're doing this story," Watrel said, "because it's going to raise some eyebrows that this is going on in the morning in a Walmart parking lot."​


About the Author:

Erik Sandoval joined the News 6 team as a reporter in May 2013 and became an Investigator in 2020. During his time at News 6, Erik has covered several major stories, including the 2016 Presidential campaign. He was also one of the first reporters live on the air at the Pulse Nightclub shooting.

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