Troopers, K-9 units take down 2 pounds of meth on traffic stop

CLINTON COUNTY, Ind. (WLFI) - A Clinton County traffic stop led to a discovery of pounds of drugs inside a car on I-65 this week.

According to Indiana State Police (ISP), at about 4:45 p.m. Wednesday a trooper stopped a pickup truck for a traffic violation on southbound I-65 near mile marker 151, which is just south of the Frankfort exit.

The driver of the truck, 31-year-old Alejandro Martinez from Chicago, along with his female passenger, did not have valid driver’s licenses.

The trooper then began to suspect possible drug activity and did a free-air search of the vehicle with his K-9 partner. The dog alerted on the vehicle.

Another state trooper and his K-9 partner joined the search and as a result, roughly 2 pounds of what appeared to be methamphetamine was found in a child booster seat inside the truck.

Martinez was arrested and booked into the county jail on charges of dealing meth, possession of meth and never receiving an operator’s license. No bond has been set and the passenger was released with no charges filed. The investigation is ongoing.

In an important message to the community, ISP Sgt. Kim Riley wanted to stress the fact that highway safety is of the utmost importance.

“No traffic stop is considered routine to a police officer,” Sgt. Riley wrote. “You never know what is going on inside the vehicle when the officer approaches. It could be Mom taking the kids to a soccer game or a person wanted on felony warrants who said he would never be taken alive. Every stop is unique and requires the officer’s full attention.”

A few reminders: Give an officer on a traffic stop a wide berth when you see flashing lights. Slow down and move into the other lane as required by law.

“You never know when you might need an officer and you will want motorists to slow down and move over while he or she is helping you out along the side of the roadway,” Sgt. Riley said.