GRANTS - While a lot of people across America were traveling back home this weekend from visiting family and friends for Thanksgiving, drug dealers were trying to find New Mexico State Police officers off guard. Based on three unrelated incidents, they didn't.

New Mexico State Police Officers place a a highly compressed brick of marijuana in a plastic bag on Sunday afternoon. The bricks were found by officer Arsenio Chavez inside of a artificial gas tank on the bottom of an SUV traveling eastbound near Sky City Casino. Beacon photo by Donald Jaramillo

“Maybe they thought we wouldn't be out, especially with our K9s,” said state police officer Troy Velasquez.

In the three incidents on I-40, two on Nov. 30 and one on Nov. 29, state police officers found approximately 173 pounds of marijuana, valued at nearly $75,000 on the street.

On Saturday, two male subjects were traveling eastbound near the old Stuckey's near mile marker 90. Officers pulled them over for a traffic violation and ultimately found 55 pounds of marijuana packed in suitcases in the trunk of the vehicle. Officer Milo Lucero requested to search their vehicle based on inconsistent information received from the two subjects and received consent.

The following day, state police officer Troy Velasquez stopped a Ford Fusion near Laguna traveling eastbound because it was traveling six miles over the speed limit in a high wind zone. Inside were two adults, a male and female, and two children. Again, based on inconsistent information received from the two adults and an overwhelming smell of air freshener and fabric softener, Velasquez requested to search the vehicle. The officer found eight pounds of marijuana in eight plastic bags. One adult was arrested and the other adult was released with the two young children.

Also on Sunday during a separate incident, state police officer Arsenio Chavez of Albuquerque stopped a blue Chevy Suburban with two male subjects near Sky City Casino at mile marker 103 because a brake light was not working. The driver said he did not know the owner of the vehicle and the officer received information that the vehicle had been insured just days previously. Again, information between the driver and passenger did not match and the vehicle had an overwhelming smell of air freshener. The officer asked if there was any contraband in the vehicle and the driver said no. Chavez than requested to search the vehicle and received written and verbal consent. Chavez' dog Chica, a K9 Belgian Malnois, alerted Chavez in the interior and exterior part of the vehicle. With a fiber optic scope, Chavez found bricks of highly compressed marijuana (between 110-120 pounds) in an artificial gas tank under the vehicle. The two subjects were interviewed and arrested.

By Donald Jaramillo

Beacon managing editor/publisher