LIMA — The state of Ohio suffered a setback of sorts Thursday morning in the drug-trafficking trial of Travon Thomas, when a key witness suffered an apparent loss of memory.
Dewayne Wilson-Smith, a confidential informant employed by the West Central Ohio Crime Task Force and Northwest Ohio Safe Streets Task Force to conduct controlled purchases of narcotics from Thomas during April 2021, was on the witness stand Thursday morning when Assistant Allen County Prosecutor Kyle Thines became frustrated with answers he received from the informant.
Asked about various components of drug buys that revolved around Thomas, Wilson-Smith responded with answers of “I don’t remember” and “I can’t recall.”
Clearly upset with Wilson-Smith’s sudden amnesia, Thines asked Judge Terri Kohlrieser to declare the informant a hostile witness. Thines said that in earlier meetings with prosecutors, Wilson-Smith had given answers to questions that differed greatly from his responses from the witness stand.
“Frankly, his testimony today is a bit of a surprise to the state,” the prosecutor said.