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MOAB — A broken tail light led to a large drug bust in Grand County on Monday.
During a traffic stop, more than 65 pounds of fentanyl pills, 35 pounds of methamphetamine and 16 pounds of cocaine were discovered, according to sheriff's deputies.
The large bust happened on I-70 when a Ram 1500 pickup was pulled over for having a side tail light out. While checking the driver's information, a police drug sniffing K-9 was deployed to do an open air sniff around the vehicle. When the dog indicated the possible presence of drugs, the truck was searched, according to a police booking affidavit.
"Concealed inside the tailgate of the vehicle I located 14 packages containing small blue pill-size items," a deputy wrote in the affidavit.
Additional drugs were found hidden in the driver and passenger seats as well as inside an "altered panel" behind the rear seat, police said.
"The 14 packages initially located inside of the vehicle's tailgate, with the additional two packages located within the front row seats are estimated to be approximately 300,000 pills of fentanyl with an approximate weight of 66.6 pounds. The six yellow packages and one white package located within the compartment behind the passenger seat tested presumptively positive for methamphetamine with an approximate weight of 36.8 pounds. The seven white bricks also located within the compartment behind the passenger seat tested presumptively positive for cocaine with an approximate weight of 19 pounds," the affidavit alleges.
Jamie Verela, 49, and Andrea Mshel, 36, were each booked into the Grand County Jail for investigation of three counts of drug possession with intent to distribute. Verela was also arrested for investigation of facilitating the concealing and transportation of drugs in a vehicle, drug possession, and the tail light violation.
