Truckers Bring In More Than Vegetables
May 13, 2009 Two separate pot busts were made in Arizona last week as law enforcement officials found thousands of pounds of marijuana hidden amongst bell peppers and watermelons, respectively.
In one bust in Nogales, KTVK reported that over 5,000 pounds of marijuana were found in a load of bell peppers. The discovery was made when a Department of Public Safety (DPS) officer conducted an inspection on a commercial truck with Mexican license plates.
DPS reports the driver was not able to provide a log book and officers were notified the license plate was not real. The truck had been loaded in Mexico, although the driver claimed he was taking produce into Mexico.
Officers searched the truck and found bundles of pot totaling 5,027 pounds amongst the bell peppers. The 34-year old driver from Mexico was arrested and faces charges for transporting the drugs.
In the second bust, KPHO reports that DPS officers discovered during a traffic stop 508 pounds of plastic-wrapped marijuana bundles in a trailer carrying watermelons on Interstate 17 near New River.
Anthony Moyd, 39, of Newark, N.J., was booked on charges of possession of marijuana for sale, transportation of marijuana for sale, and operating an illegal enterprise.
A DPS Arizona commercial vehicle enforcement officer stopped the commercial vehicle traveling northbound on Interstate 17 on Tuesday for a traffic violation and inspection.
The driver had picked up a load of watermelons in Nogales, DPS officers said. After obtaining written and verbal consent to search the vehicle, another DPS officer discovered the bundles of marijuana in three bins toward the front of the trailer.
The commercial vehicle is owned by Coanel Trucking Company in New Jersey, DPS officers said. Moyd was traveling from Nogales to Massachusetts, officers said.
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