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CEDAR CITY — A man accused of trafficking methamphetamine worth up to $1 million through Utah has been charged.
Javier Molina Lopez, 43, was charged Wednesday in Iron County"s 5th District Court with drug possession with intent to distribute, a second-degree felony; drug possession, a class A misdemeanor; and possession of drug paraphernalia, a class B misdemeanor.
On Saturday, about 9:30 p.m., a Utah Highway Patrol trooper pulled over a Volkswagen Jetta with a Colorado license plate that was headed north on I-15 and following a semi too closely, according to a police booking affidavit.
"I approached the vehicle on the right side and immediately smelled the odor of marijuana coming from the vehicle," the arresting trooper wrote in the affidavit.
After writing Lopez a citation, troopers conducted a "probable cause search," according to the affidavit.
"During the search, we located 30 packages of methamphetamine in the gas tank of the vehicle. The packages all weighed approximately one pound apiece," troopers wrote in the affidavit.
Lopez then stated he was being paid to transport the drugs, according to the affidavit.
"This methamphetamine is a substantial amount. It has a street value of $556,000 to $1.1 million," troopers stated.
Law enforcers have requested that Lopez be held in jail without bail pending trial, noting that he has ties to Colorado and Texas and no ties to Iron County and would likely flee the area if released.
