VALPARAISO | Formal charges were filed against a Lake County Sheriff's Department deputy arrested Wednesday on numerous drug charges.

Gary Pilipovich, 29, of 3370 Reserve Drive, Apt. 115, in Portage, was charged Thursday with felony counts of possessing cocaine, possessing a syringe and possessing a controlled substance, and misdemeanor counts of possessing marijuana and paraphernalia.

He bonded out of the Porter County Jail less than an hour and a half after being booked Wednesday morning.

The charges stem from a search of Pilipovich's Willowcreek Estates apartment Tuesday triggered when an officer claimed he saw bag of marijuana in plain view earlier in the day while assisting with an eviction.

Police said they found cocaine in the closet of the master bedroom and marijuana in several locations around the apartment, including in a Lake County sheriff's bag. Police said they also found a multi-colored smoking pipe in the apartment and a collection of painkillers, amphetamines and anti-anxiety pills in Pilipovich's red 2000 Pontiac Trans Am car.