Henderson police seized 200 pounds of marijuana after a Wednesday evening traffic stop near a local elementary school, according to a Henderson Police Department spokesman.
After a traffic stop for speeding, Officer Payne Bickett conducted an initial search of the cab before moving to the bed of the truck, when he opened the tailgate to find multiple black bags, said Sgt. Bill Russell.
After the driver was asked what the bags contained, he admitted they were filled with approximately 200 pounds of marijuana, said the news release.
Russell said police aren’t releasing the name of the elementary school because the department’s investigation is continuing in the area and there could be some connections nearby.
Russell also said HPD isn’t releasing the name of the man who was pulled over nor the make of the vehicle. Russell said the driver is being questioned as a part of the investigation. The sergeant did say that the man was not from either Henderson or Evansville.
Russell estimated the street value of the marijuana at more than $100,000. He said that amount could go lower or higher, depending on where it would be sold.
Additionally, the amount of marijuana is similar to some of the bigger seizures in the past four or five years conducted by HPD patrol officers, Russell said. Russell said the biggest in recent memory was a garage-full of drugs that he identified while he was working the streets.
The driver said he was transporting the drugs from Indiana to Kentucky, said Russell, adding police cannot release any more information about where the driver had intended to take the marijuana.
Russell also said that the charge could be pushed up to the federal level because he crossed state lines, and HPD detectives are working with other regional law enforcement agencies on the case.
According to the Friday release HPD posted on Facebook, Bickett also found a “rifle-style” firearm on the floorboard and a handgun in the truck’s center console safe in the initial investigation of the vehicle. Bickett continued to smell marijuana during the initial investigation, which led him to the bed of the truck, which was covered, Russell said.
