Midwest Freelancer archive article
Highway Patrol takes drugs off the highways
(Published Feb. 10, 2006)
By Chris Post/Midwest Freelancer
Twice this month, alert troopers with the Missouri State Highway Patrol have discovered large shipments of illegal drugs making their way across the state.
The first incident occurred at 7:49 p.m., Feb. 03, when an MSHP trooper stopped a tractor trailer on U.S. Highway 60, about a mile west of Willow Springs.
What began as a simple traffic stop became something more when the officer became suspicious of the vehicle’s trailer, which was loaded with nine passenger cars.
A search was conducted with the assistance of a West Plains Police Department K-9 unit to the scene. The dog alerted on two of the cars, indicating the presence of controlled substances. A further search revealed 93 pounds of marijuana and 6 pounds of cocaine.
As the investigation developed, the Highway Patrol’s Division of Drug and Crime Control was assisted by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the South Central Drug Task Force, Cook County Illinois Sheriff’s Department and the St. Louis Police Department.
The operation included a controlled delivery to St. Louis and Harvey, Ill. — a suburb of Chicago. The delivery allowed officers to arrest three individuals on charges of felony drug trafficking.
Those arrested were Allen L. Moore, 28, of St. Louis, Mo.; Maurice E. Crowder, 35, of Hazelcrest, Ill.; and Charome C Watkins, 29, of Harvey. As for the truck driver, the investigation revealed that the he was not involved.
The combined approximate street value of drugs seized during this incident was $900,000 for the cocaine and $200,000 for the marijuana. At approximately 10:30 a.m. on Feb. 6, the Missouri State Highway Patrol stopped another tractor trailer was stopped for an equipment violation. When officers stopped the truck at the Lafayette County weigh station, the driver gave them inconsistent information. Because of this officers asked for — and were given — consent to search the vehicle.
That search led to the seizure of 240 pounds of marijuana.
Juan Llamasbarraza, 37, and Audencio Espinoza, 31, both of Indio, Calif., were arrested for drug trafficking and taken to the Lafayette County Jail in Lexington.
By Chris Post/Midwest Freelancer
Twice this month, alert troopers with the Missouri State Highway Patrol have discovered large shipments of illegal drugs making their way across the state.
The first incident occurred at 7:49 p.m., Feb. 03, when an MSHP trooper stopped a tractor trailer on U.S. Highway 60, about a mile west of Willow Springs.
What began as a simple traffic stop became something more when the officer became suspicious of the vehicle’s trailer, which was loaded with nine passenger cars.
A search was conducted with the assistance of a West Plains Police Department K-9 unit to the scene. The dog alerted on two of the cars, indicating the presence of controlled substances. A further search revealed 93 pounds of marijuana and 6 pounds of cocaine.
As the investigation developed, the Highway Patrol’s Division of Drug and Crime Control was assisted by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the South Central Drug Task Force, Cook County Illinois Sheriff’s Department and the St. Louis Police Department.
The operation included a controlled delivery to St. Louis and Harvey, Ill. — a suburb of Chicago. The delivery allowed officers to arrest three individuals on charges of felony drug trafficking.
Those arrested were Allen L. Moore, 28, of St. Louis, Mo.; Maurice E. Crowder, 35, of Hazelcrest, Ill.; and Charome C Watkins, 29, of Harvey. As for the truck driver, the investigation revealed that the he was not involved.
The combined approximate street value of drugs seized during this incident was $900,000 for the cocaine and $200,000 for the marijuana. At approximately 10:30 a.m. on Feb. 6, the Missouri State Highway Patrol stopped another tractor trailer was stopped for an equipment violation. When officers stopped the truck at the Lafayette County weigh station, the driver gave them inconsistent information. Because of this officers asked for — and were given — consent to search the vehicle.
That search led to the seizure of 240 pounds of marijuana.
Juan Llamasbarraza, 37, and Audencio Espinoza, 31, both of Indio, Calif., were arrested for drug trafficking and taken to the Lafayette County Jail in Lexington.