An alleged drug trafficker is behind bars after police in Kentucky confiscated 55 pounds of suspected methamphetamine wrapped as Christmas presents in the trunk of his car.
The load was meant to appear as festive Christmas cheer, but a police K-9 wasn’t buying it and alerted officers to the drugs stored in a 2013 Chevrolet Malibu driven by a 23-year-old Nebraska man, identified as Jacob Talamantes, according to authorities.
The arrest occurred this week on the Bluegrass Parkway in Jeffersontown, just outside of Louisville.
“Detectives encountered Talamantes after he arrived in a vehicle,” according a statement by the Jeffersontown police. “He attempted to walk away from officers but was detained.”
“A police K9 alerted to the presence of narcotics during an exterior sniff of the vehicle,” the statement continued. “A search of the trunk uncovered multiple boxes wrapped in Christmas paper. Investigators said the packages contained suspected methamphetamine.”
Images of the booty were released to local news outlets.
Police said Talamantes told investigators he was traveling from Iowa and intended to traffic the drugs.
“No amount of festive wrapping can disguise the harm these drugs inflict on families and communities,” Jeffersontown Police Chief Richard Sanders said in a Facebook post. “The coordinated efforts of partner agencies ensured these holiday-wrapped packages never reached the streets.”
Talamantes is expected to appear in court January 2, charged with first-degree trafficking in a controlled substance, according to news reports.
Contributor Lowell Cauffiel is the best-selling author of Below the Line and nine other crime novels and nonfiction titles. See lowellcauffiel.com for more.
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