A wrestling star at The Villages High School who received his diploma days after a drug arrest is poised to escape prosecution in the case.

Ethan Riley Hatcher, 18, of Wildwood, last week in Sumter County Court, was allowed to enter into a pre-trial intervention contract. The terms of the contract were not available, but such contracts typically call on the defendant to take a class or seek an evaluation. If the defendant completes the terms of the contract, the case is dismissed.     

Hatcher had been arrested May 17 after his black Ford pickup was pulled over in the parking lot of Darrell’s Diner at U.S. 301 and County Road 462 in Wildwood, according to an arrest report from the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office. He was stopped for running a stop sign.

When a deputy approached the pickup, he “smelled a strong odor of burnt marijuana emitting from the vehicle,” the report said.

Hatcher admitted he did not have a medical marijuana card. A search turned up a pen with a brown liquid narcotic which field tested positive for marijuana THC. There was also marijuana in the vehicle.

Hatcher was arrested on a felony charge of possession of a controlled substance and misdemeanor charge of possession of marijuana.