By Joe Bachman

MARSHFIELD — A Hewitt man is facing charges of possession of MDMA and THC with intent to sell, after crashing his vehicle into a utility pole.

According to police reports, on May 5, authorities responded to an accident in the area of 21st St. and S. Maple St. in Marshfield. A caller informed police that the vehicle struck a utility pole and was in the middle of the intersection.

Once they arrived, officers found two men unsuccessfully attempting to push a Chevy Blazer with front-end damage off of the road. Police identified the driver as 19-year-old Evan Kortuem. According to Kortuem, he was driving too fast and failed to see the stop sign at the intersection at the top of the hill which led him to drive into the pole.

Kortuem informed police that he had about “six beers” prior to driving.

A K-9 unit was soon brought out to do a perimeter sniff of the vehicle which indicated positive of the presence of drugs in the blazer. A police-conducted search turned up a bag containing a scale with white residue on it, 37.5 grams of marijuana, and a plastic baggie containing nine white capsules, later identified as MDMA, which is a psychoactive drug.

Kortuem allegedly told police that all of the items were his, but that he uses the scale to package marijuana for himself, and that he gives MDMA to his friends. Court records indicate multiple prior convictions of THC possession in Wood and Oneida Counties.

If convicted, Kortuem faces up to 43 years and six months imprisonment for a class D felony of selling designer drugs, as well as up to $110,000 in fines. His initial appearance is scheduled for May 22. Kortuem is currently out on a $2,500 bail.