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Man named Edward Cocaine arrested for drug possession

"I thought I'd seen it all," said judge

Christopher Hooton
Thursday 17 April 2014 11:42 EDT
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The judge couldn't help but laugh
The judge couldn't help but laugh (Sun Sentinel)

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A Florida judge couldn't conceal his amusement when a man came before him charged with drug possession on Wednesday. The defendant's name? Edward Cocaine.

There were giggles in the bond court and Judge John "Jay" Hurley did a double take as the man's name was announced, before he uttered: "What?"

"My last name is Cocaine," the man said proudly at the podium, it transpiring that it was indeed his legal name as stated on his driver's license.

"You know, I thought I'd seen it all," Hurley laughed. "How many times have the police told you to step out of the car during your life?"

"Just about every time I get pulled over," Cocaine replied.

Funnily enough Cocaine was actually arrested for illegal possession of Xanax.

His name was not the result of a bragging name change, according to the Sun Sentinel, but dated back to his great-grandparents.

"My great-grandparents came over here from Greece and they changed it," he explained. "That was like in the 1920s."

"I'm still trying to absorb this," said the judge, perplexed.

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