Texas police are on the hunt for a real bad egg.
Cops in Lufkin are “actively searching” for a man they say filled plastic Easter eggs with small amounts of marijuana and hid them around the city for anybody to find — including a young girl who found one while at a park with her grandfather.
After hiding the eggs, Avante Nicholson, 23, went on social media to post pictures and hints guiding searchers to the location of each — which he stashed in three local parks and behind a Motel 6.
Upon receiving a tip from a resident who saw the online posts, officers scoured Nicholson’s Facebook page and went on a scavenger hunt of their own — quickly finding the weed-filled eggs at Morris Frank, Winston and Grace Dunn Richardson Parks, as well as the one behind the motel.
In total, cops said Nicholson hid about a quarter-ounce of weed in the city two hours north of Houston. One photo he posted showed five eggs on the seat of a vehicle, but officers initially believed he hadn’t gotten around to hiding the fifth.
However, the elusive fifth egg was found the following day by a man and his granddaughter, who brought it to the police station, cops said.
After scanning through his Facebook posts, police found multiple references to selling drugs, as well as a statement that whoever “shopped” with him the day he hid the eggs would get clues to their locations.
“Incidents like this are a reminder of why we take seriously all information called in to our offices,” Lufkin Police Chief David Thomas said in a statement.
“On the surface, it seems implausible that someone would give away a drug, but the follow up proves that sometimes even the most unlikely things do happen.
“The safety of our community is at the forefront of everything we do. And in cases such as this, when it endangers children, we are even more vigilant.”
Nicholson’s rap sheet includes several weapons and drug offenses, including unlawful carrying of a weapon, fraud, engaging in organized criminal activity and possession of between two and four ounces of marijuana.
Lufkin Police have issued four felony warrants against Nicholson following his illicit weedster egg hunt, three for delivery of marijuana in a drug-free zone and a fourth for a state jail felony for delivery of marijuana.
Recreational cannabis is illegal in the state of Texas, which also has a more stringent medical marijuana policy than many states which have legalized in recent years.