Prosecutor Criticizes Use of 14-Year-Old in Drug Sting

Oakland County Prosecutor Jessica Cooper has criticized the Lake Orion Police Department’s use of a 14-year-old boy in a March drug bust, the Detroit Free Press reported, calling his role in the sting "dangerous."

The case involves the 14-year-old boy and Edward Watkins, a 35-year-old parolee with an extensive criminal history, the Free Press Reported.

According to the report, Lake Orion Police Chief Jerry Narsh said Watkins was a father figure to a friend of the 14-year-old and had tried to get the boy to buy marijuana. Watkins was arrested March 15, the report indicated, on a charge of delivering marijuana to a minor after the boy arranged a transaction in a parking lot near Children's Park at Anderson and Front streets. He is due for a preliminary examination Monday at 52-3 District Court in Rochester Hills.

The boy’s father has filed a complaint with the Attorney General regarding his son’s involvement in the sting, the report indicated.