Idaho State Police make major drug bust
Idaho state troopers discovered 52 pounds of methamphetamine and 27 pounds of cocaine during a routine traffic stop early Saturday.
According to the Idaho State Police, the traffic stop happened at 2:07 a.m. along U.S. 20 at milepost 311 nAccording to the Idaho State Police, the traffic stop happened at 2:07 a.m. along U.S. 20 at milepost 311 near Idaho Falls.
Officials said a U-Haul truck was pulled over because it could not maintain its lane of travel.
A K-9 unit from Bonneville County was called and it sniffed out the drugs in the back of the truck which were hidden among household items
Police identified the driver as Sergio Javier Varela-Vallecillo, 29, according to his Honduras passport. His passenger, Felicia Inez Varela, 28, is from Texas.
Police said there were discrepancies with the rental agreement for the U-Haul, and both people in the vehicle denied ownership of the property inside.
A Bonneville County K9 unit was dispatched, and police say the K9 alerted officers to the drugs inside the U-Haul.
Varela and Varela-Vallecillo are now in the Bonneveille County Jail. They are charged with felony trafficking of methamphetamine and cocaine.
Varela is also being charged with felony introducing methamphetamine into a correctional facility, because police say they found an additional 5 grams of methamphetamine on her when she arrived at the jail.
Varela-Vallecillo also faces a charge of failure to purchase a driver’s license.
According to police, the confiscated drugs have a street value of roughly $1 million to $1.2 million.
Idaho State Police held a press conference today stating the investigation could take some time because of the large amount of drugs involved.
Bonneville county Sheriff Paul Wilde and Idaho State Police Captain Danny Bunderson say it’s the biggest drug bust they have been involved in.
“I think the important thing to realize about this, is that this load was destined to somewhere in the United state and who So who knows how many lives we may have thwarted so it wouldn’t have made it to that community, so it wouldn’t have made it to the streets,” said Captain Bunderson.
Police said the U-Haul was on its way from California to the mid west.
ear Idaho Falls.
