Officer, K-9 locate $1.8M in drugs during Fresno County traffic stop, CHP says

An officer and police dog located drugs with an estimated street value of around $1.8M during a traffic stop in Fresno County, according to the California Highway Patrol.

At about 6 p.m. Tuesday along northbound Interstate 5 at West Shields Avenue, an officer stopped a silver 2012 Toyota Avalon for allegedly traveling too closely to another vehicle and having an object applied to the windshield, side or rear mirrors, according to the CHP.

After making contact with the driver and passenger identified as Robert Graf, 49, of Page, Ariz., and Darrick Mason, 35, of Mesa, Ariz., several factors led the officer to believe the occupants were engaged in criminal activity, according to Merced CHP Officer Eric Zuniga.

During an investigation, K-9 officer “Bruce” was used to conduct an exterior sniff to the vehicle and alerted the officer to the odor of narcotics. The officer was granted written and verbal consent to search the vehicle, according to the release.

During the search, authorities found about 47 pounds of heroin as well as about one pound of Fentanyl that was located in an ice chest in the vehicle’s truck, the CHP said.

Graf and Mason were arrested on suspicion of possession for sale of a controlled substance and transportation of a controlled substance, according to the news release.

According to Zuniga, the suspects were cited and released.

This story was originally published July 2, 2020 at 6:56 PM with the headline "Officer, K-9 locate $1.8M in drugs during Fresno County traffic stop, CHP says."