A Nevada man was arrested after five kilograms of suspected cocaine was found inside a hidden compartment in his vehicle’s floorboard during a traffic stop Tuesday (April 26) night.
At approximately 9:15 p.m. Tuesday, a deputy with the St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Highway Enforcement Unit conducted a traffic stop on a silver Kia Sorento for improper lane use on Interstate 10 just west of the Mississippi State Line.
Contact was made with the driver and sole occupant of the vehicle, Reonans Rodrick Nelson (DOB: 06/26/1973), whose last known address was Las Vegas, Nevada.
Nelson refused to disclose his travel itinerary, and K-9 Echo was deployed for a vehicle sniff.
K-9 Echo provided a positive narcotics odor alert, and a search of the vehicle uncovered one plastic bag containing suspected Marijuana in the front center console. Deputies then discovered an aftermarket hidden compartment built in the vehicle’s floorboard. The hidden compartment contained 5 kilograms of suspected cocaine.
A total of $1,495 in suspected proceeds from narcotics transactions was also located in Nelson’s possession.
Nelson was arrested on the following charges and booked into the St. Tammany Parish Correctional Center:
L.R.S. 32:79 Driving on Roadway Laned for Traffic
L.R.S. 40:967A Possession with Intent to Distribute a Schedule II Controlled Dangerous Substance (Cocaine)
L.R.S. 40:1041 - Transactions Involving Proceeds from Drug Offenses.
Nelson was also issued a summons for violation of L.R.S. 40:966C – Possession of a Schedule I Controlled Dangerous Substance (Marijuana).
The Kia Sorento and the cash were seized, pending forfeiture.