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Show Altered van yields drugs SAL IN A A stop by the Highway Patrol netted 68 pounds of marijuana worth about $35,000. Trooper Dennis Avery stopped a 1975 Dodge van for speeding. He explained that there was an odor of the drug as well as other signs that indicated that the vehicle had been altered. The vehicle owner, Felipe Perez, 34, from California, gave permission per-mission to search the vehicle and the drugs were found in the cross sections of the corrugated metal in the floor of the van. The metal had been cut away and 46 packages of marijuana were later found. Both the owner of the vehicle and a passenger, Jesus Molina, 28, also of California, were being held on $10,000 bail each in the Sevier County Jail. They were charged with possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute. Presently, marijuana is selling for about $79 a quarter ounce or $4,480 a pound. It was noted that Perez has had a couple of prior arrests related to drugs and that Molina had been arrested for transporting illegal aliens into the United States. |