WEST MONROE, La. (KTVE/KARD) — A Florida man was arrested along I-20 in Monroe, Louisiana after Louisiana State Police Troopers found 40 pounds of Marijuana and a large stack of cash in the vehicle.
According to arrest reports, a Louisiana State Police Trooper was patrolling along I-20 between the Garrett Road and Millhaven Road exits when he saw a red Hyundai Sonata drift across the white fog line with both right-side tires and then drift back into the outside lane.
The trooper initiated a traffic stop and once he began talking to the driver, 28-year-old James Outley of St. Petersburg, Florida, he noticed that Outley was acting extremely nervous and “deceptive about his travel itinerary.”
The trooper asked to search the vehicle and was refused. LSP K-9 Skip and his Handler were then dispatched to the scene. Skip, according to the arrest reports, gave a positive alert for narcotics when doing a free air sniff of the vehicle.
When troopers then searched the vehicle, they found approximately 40 pounds of high-grade Marijuana stored in two suitcases in the trunk of the car. They also found $7,472 in cash in a bag on the front passenger seat.
Outley was then arrested and taken to the Metro Narcotics Office where he was interviewed. Outley told the trooper that he did not have a job and sold Marijuana to make ends meet.
Outley was then taken to the Ouachita Correctional Center and booked on the following charges:
- Possession with Intent to Distribute Marijuana
- Transactions Involving Proceeds From Drug Offenses
- Improper Lane Usage