CENTRAL POINT, Ore. — With the help of a drug-sniffing K-9, troopers with Oregon State Police say they discovered 56 pounds of methamphetamine during a traffic stop along I-5 near Central Point.
Around 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday, a trooper from the Central Point Area Command stopped the driver of a 2020 Chevrolet pickup for allegedly speeding on I-5 northbound near milepost 34.
OSP said that the driver consented to a search of the vehicle. To aid in the search, the trooper brought in his narcotics detection K-9 "Jaxson."
"K-9 Jaxson alerted to the odor of a controlled substance," OSP said. "A search of the vehicle revealed approximately 56 pounds of methamphetamine concealed in the spare tire."
The driver was identified as 26-year-old Esteban Villa of Anaheim, California. Villa was lodged in the Jackson County Jail on charges for Unlawful Possession and Delivery of Methamphetamine, OSP said. Villa no longer appears on the jail log and has presumably been released pending court proceedings.
OSP said that it was assisted by the Department of Homeland Security Investigations' Medford office.
