A truck inspection
on Monday at the eastbound I-94 weigh station in Porter County led to a
large drug seizure, the Indiana State Police said.
According to
police, at 1:15 p.m. inspectors were completing a Level 2 inspection of a
commercial vehicle when the trailers contents raised their suspicions. The
2016 Volvo, owned/operated by American Roadies Inc., based out of San Jose,
Calif., was pulling a trailer loaded with 18,000 pounds of minced garlic,
police said. As the inspector looked in the trailer, he observed what
appeared to be a black case which was inconsistent with the rest of the
freight.
The case proved to
contain several packages of a white substance, which subsequently
field-tested positive for the presence of cocaine, police said.
The occupants of
the truck were taken into custody without incident, police said. A total
of 50 kilos of suspected cocaine"--approximately 110 pounds of it--"was
recovered from the trailer. The inspection was completed with numerous
violations being noted and the trucks being impounded. The estimated street
value of this seizure is approximately $1.5 to $2 million.
The trucks
occupants, Baljinder Singh, 37, of Indio, Calif., and Gurwinder Singh, 32,
of Riverside, Calif., were charged with possession of cocaine and
transported to Porter County Jail, police said.
Assisting at the
scene was the Porter County Sheriffs Police.
