CHP seizes 70 pounds of meth during car stop on Highway 152

SANTA CLARA COUNTY – About 70 pounds of crystal methamphetamine was seized during a traffic stop last week on Highway 152, according to the California Highway Patrol.

The incident happened around 3:35 p.m. on Aug. 2, when a K-9 officer pulled over a pickup truck for a traffic violation east of Casa de Fruta, the CHP said in a news release Tuesday. The truck was traveling westbound, toward Gilroy, at the time.

According to the CHP, the officer “noted several factors that led him to believe the driver was engaged in criminal activity.” The officer also determined the driver was unlicensed.

The officer used his canine partner, Rudi, to search the exterior of the truck and “received a positive alert,” the CHP said.

A search of the pickup truck’s interior turned up about 70 pounds of crystal methamphetamine with an estimated street value of $82,000, according to the CHP.

The driver – identified as a 37-year-old Los Banos man – was arrested and booked into Santa Clara County jail on charges of possession of methamphetamine for sale and transportation of methamphetamine.