A Port Arthur woman was recently indicted by a Jefferson County grand jury for allegedly hiding a metal tube with methamphetamine in a body cavity.

She reportedly kept the object hidden, refusing to allow officers to remove the object even after a search warrant was issued and an x-ray showed it was there. It was only when doctors prepared to sedate her that the object was removed.

The woman, identified as Precious White, also known as Betty Lynn Tingler-Clay, Betty Lynn Clay, Betty Lynn Tingler, Precious Lynn White and Betty Lynn Clay, 37, was a passenger in a truck on July 25 where police say they saw her hide something in her shorts during a traffic stop, according to information from the district attorney’s office.

As she was arrested for drug paraphernalia, a female officer saw White shove a yellow, metallic, cylindrical object into her vaginal cavity and the officer couldn’t retrieve it. She was reportedly asked White numerous times to remove the object but White insisted there was no item in her.

The woman was transferred to the Jefferson County Correctional Facility, where, according to the document, the staff was unable to remove the item due to its location.

A search warrant was written for the body cavity search but when hospital staff attempted to retrieve the item “White intentionally clenched her leg and abdominal muscles” thus not allowing entry to the cavity all the while insisting there was no item there.

A x-ray was done of her abdomen which “clearly showed the item listed in the search warrant but again she continued to contract her muscles until doctors prepared to sedate her in order to remove the object.

The object was finally removed and found to be a yellowish, cylindrical metal tube with a screw-on lid. The tube was opened and reportedly contained a green plastic baggie with methamphetamine in it.

She was brought back to the jail and booked in for possession of a controlled substance and resisting search.

The indictment was handed down on Wednesday.

An indictment is not a final conviction of guilt; it is only a ruling by the grand jury that allows the district attorney’s office to proceed with a criminal case.