A traffic stop on a South Texas highway led to a Zavala County deputy confiscating $1.4 million worth of methamphetamine, authorities said on Facebook.
Last Thursday, the deputy stopped a brown Buick on Highway 57 after the driver committed multiple traffic and equipment violations. The deputy then observed “several criminal indicators and safety concerns” involving three children without seat belts in the car.
The driver, who has not been identified, gave the deputy consent to search his car. The deputy then found suspicious modifications and hardware that didn’t belong on the car near the radiator.
The deputy then called for a K-9 with the Texas Department of Public Safety to help. With paws on the ground, the K-9 sniffed out a large package wrapped in black tape and secured with bale wire behind the radiator.
About 18 kilograms of meth was found with a value of over $1.4 million, authorities said.
Shortly after, the driver was arrested and taken to the Zavala County Sheriff’s Office. The three children who were inside the car were taken and placed in “climate-controlled care.”
“We would like to thank Texas DPS for their assistance in this interdiction. This is another example of our deputies’ commitment to keeping dangerous narcotics off our streets and out of our community. Investigation is ongoing in conjunction with” ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations, the Zavala County Sheriff’s Office said.