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TOOELE — A minor driving infraction led to a large drug bust in Tooele County over the weekend.
Matthew Randall Hatcher, 42, of Springfield, Illinois, was driving east on I-80 in Tooele County Sunday when a Utah Highway Patrol trooper stopped him for not having mud flaps and "an obstructed license plate not allowing the state of registration to be visible," according to a police booking affidavit.
During the traffic stop, a police K-9 was used to conduct an open-air sniff around Hatcher's vehicle and indicated the possible presence of drugs.
When troopers searched the vehicle, they found "322 pounds of raw marijuana, 748 THC vape cartridges, 4.5 lbs of THC edibles, and 330 grams of THC resin," charging documents state.
Hatcher was charged in 3rd District Court Monday with possessing more than 100 pounds of marijuana, a second-degree felony; and possession of drug paraphernalia with intent to distribute, a class A misdemeanor.
