A K-9 officer search has led to a record California Highway Patrol bust of over $10.5 million in illicit narcotics.
The incident occurred when a K-9 officer performed an enforcement stop on a 2014 Kia Soul due to a traffic violation.
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“During the contact, the officer noted several factors that led him to believe the driver and passenger were engaged in criminal activity,” a release from the CHP read.
“The CHP K-9 officer deployed his canine partner ‘Luna’ on the exterior of the Kia. Luna gave a positive alert to the odor of narcotics emitting from the vehicle,” it continued.
While officers prepared to search the vehicle, the driver fled.
“The driver was not located; however, he was positively identified by evidence retrieved from within the Kia,” according to the release.
CHP worked with the Merced County Sheriff’s Department to uncover “735,000 fentanyl laced pills, approximate weight 161 pounds, 133 pounds of methamphetamine, and 37 pounds of cocaine,” the statement read.
The passenger, 23-year-old Luis Felipe Ponce Rosales of Mazatlan, Sinaloa, Mexico, was taken into custody and placed in Los Banos City Jail.
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Ponce Rosales is facing charges of possession of methamphetamine for sale, transportation of methamphetamine across noncontiguous counties, possession of cocaine/fentanyl for sale, and transportation of cocaine/fentanyl across noncontiguous counties.
Friday’s stop is the largest seizure of narcotics in Merced County’s history, the report noted.
