Published: March 13, 2008 10:11 am            

Floyd County man in ‘date-rape drug’ case not tried as scheduled

One of the two men accused of running a “date-rape drug” operation out of a home near Floyd Central High School did not have his trial begin as scheduled Monday, according to court records.

Chris Jensen, 21, of 6357 Old Vincennes Road, was to be tried Monday in Floyd County Circuit Court on three class A felonies — possession of methamphetamine within 1,000 feet of school property, dealing in gamma hydroxy butyrate, or GHB, within 1,000 feet of school property, and dealing in ecstasy within 1,000 feet of school property.

He also is charged with the class D felony of maintaining a building used for delivering controlled substances. The potential sentence per A felony is 20 to 50 years in jail, while the sentencing guidelines for a D felony call for six months to three years incarceration. A judge could also levy up to $40,000 in fines if Jensen and his co-defendant, John Wilkes, 45, are convicted on all counts.

Jensen’s trial is now set for June 2, while Wilkes is scheduled for an April 11 trial in Floyd County Superior Court. The men, who lived together, are accused of having enough GHB in their home to incapacitate hundreds of people, according to police reports. GHB is used in small doses to create euphoria, and amnesia and dizziness at higher doses. A liter of the drug — which officials said is common in date rapes — was found in the home, according to a probable-cause affidavit. Police also found other drugs, scales and packing equipment at Jensen and Wilkes’ home, records say.

A third man, Jeremy Kaelin, 32, of Henryville is also linked to the case. He was allegedly in the home when county and Drug Enforcement Administration officials executed warrants.

Kaelin purportedly did not show up to a hearing last year to discuss a misdemeanor visiting a common nuisance charge, court records show. A bench warrant was issued out of Floyd County Court in that case, and Kaelin is a fugitive.

Jensen and Wilkes are both out on bond awaiting their trials. There is no evidence either man sold drugs to Floyd Central students, Floyd County Prosecutor Keith Henderson said in a previous interview.

        

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