Cheatham drug suspect has bible with secret compartment for Narcotics

An Oregon native, recently living in Nashville is behind bars tonight in Cheatham county.

Isaiah MacMenami is charged with possession with intent to sell a variety of illegal narcotics that he had secured in a metal lock box in his car.

According to Cheatham County Drug Agents, the 40 year old suspect also had a bible with a secret compartment that the father of 2 young twin sons admits he had planned, in the future, to use to smuggle drugs.

The bible secret compartment is a trick often seen in TV shows and movies, and it is a first for a grizzled Under Cover Cheatham County agent who tells says he’s worked a lot of dope cases in his 15 years, but never before has he actually confiscated a bible with a hole cut into the pages to hide contraband.

MacMenami says, “What you haven’t seen that in movies? Yeah, I didn’t have anything in there, I didn’t even get the chance, I just had it in the car and they locked on to it big time, they are like, oooh, he’s hollowing out bibles. I’m like. alright.”

It all goes bad for the 40 year old on June 14th when drug officers see his black Nissan leaving a well known drug area. Agents make a traffic stop for a window tint violation that MacMenami says he darkened on his own.

The 40 year old tells states, he was only in town a short time, and heading to Walmart when he got busted.

“They were quick. I was in town, like an hour, and I was already in jail.”

MacMenami will tell officers he is on drug probation out of Nashville. When asked for permission to check his car, he declines. But agents run a K9 around the vehicle. The dog alerts on the passenger side door, which is where Drug Agents find contraband, THC vials and paraphernalia.

Agents also find a metallic lock box with a combination. MacMenami tells officers he knows the combination, but he doesn’t know what’s inside the box.

Once open, officers find multiple sealed packages and containers of meth, heroin, ecstasy, cocaine even Viagra.

When asked about all the drugs in his possession, MacMenami says, “Yeah, people were trading stuff for ice. Yes, people want ice, and they say, I got a couple of these, what would you do man? Honestly I didn’t sell much, I just did it to party with people.”

Cheatham Drug agents also find a bible. The bible has been hollowed out to contain contraband without being easily seen.

The drug suspect states, he hollowed it out with the intent of possibly smuggling drugs one day.

“Ah when you are on drugs, you find ways to waste time and I was in a hotel room one day and I was there’s a Gideon’s Bible and I’m like lets hollow it out cause I saw it in a movie one time.”

The drug agent who makes the arrest says the hollowed out bible trick is a first for him.

“I’ve never seen one in person up to this date and I’ve been doing this like 15 years. I do not think it was very moralistic. It’s definitely one of a kind, a unique find.”

MacMenami says he has had a drug dependency. He says it is the reason he is in jail and the reason many bad things have happened in his life.

“Honestly I always thought drugs, you can choose to stop, but after a while, it’s the way. I’ve been doing them 10 years.”

He also blames people’s drug addictions on small towns like Ashland City where he says there is nothing else to do.

“I look at people like this, there’s nothing for people to do. There’s a Walmart and a jail. And there’s nothing for people to do. What should you do with your time to feel alive here. It’s why people turn to drugs so they don’t feel so depressed with what the world is coming to.”

When told he did have a bible and he could have spent that time reading it, the drug offender stops, laughs and says, “yeah, I did.”

MacMenami is in jail on felony drug charges under a $75,000 bond.