Woman held without bond after arrest on charges of selling meth, fleeing cops

A Maricopa woman was arrested in October for selling and possession of methamphetamine, but her boyfriend wanted in the case escaped and remains at large, police spokesman Ricky Alvarado said.

Laura Gamble, 33, was taken to the Pinal County jail Oct. 21 after law enforcement officers found baggies filled with meth inside her residence on West Paitilla Lane in Acacia Crossings..

Gamble remained in custody without bond after two hearings in Pinal Superior Court on Oct. 23 and Oct. 28. She was charged with possession of a dangerous drug, sale of a dangerous drug, sale of a narcotic drug, possession of a narcotic drug, escape in the second degree and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Pinal County Adult Probation Officer Malynda Zivkovic arrived at Gamble’s house on a probation check at 12:30 p.m. Oct. 19, a police report said.

“Upon arrival, Laura locked herself in a bedroom on the east side of the home,” the report said.

Zivkovic unlocked the door, handcuffed Gamble and searched the room.

“While assisting with the search of the room, I observed in a dresser drawer a red box containing a medium-sized baggie with a tied end, containing suspected methamphetamine, seven small individually packaged-for-sale baggies of suspected methamphetamine and one packaged-for sale baggie of suspected Oxycodone,” a Maricopa police officer wrote in his report.

Police also found counterfeit $100 bills in the home and drug paraphernalia, the report said.

As Gamble was being transported to the Maricopa police, she escaped from the handcuffs and ran from the police car. During a foot pursuit, she broke into a residence on North Ancon Avenue to elude capture.

“A search of the immediate area was conducted, and Laura was taken back into custody,” the police report said. “Homeowner on North Ancon wished to prosecute for criminal trespassing.”