I-70 traffic stop yields 133 pounds of marijuana

A Saturday traffic stop on Interstate 70 in Morgan County led to the discovery of 133 pounds of marijuana and the arrest of a Costa Rican man.

Courtesy Indiana State Police

LITTLE POINT — A Costa Rican man is in jail following a Saturday stop in Interstate 70 in which an estimated $300,000 worth of marijuana was discovered.

Around 4:20 p.m. on Saturday, an Indiana state trooper observed a GMC Yukon that was following too close to a tractor trailer on I-70 near the 51-mile marker eastbound, 10 miles east of Cloverdale.

The driver of the vehicle was identified as Alvaro Lopez-Chacon, 39, of Costa Rica. During the course of the stop, the trooper observed criminal indicators and requested a canine.

Trooper Kyle Hall and his canine Barker, from the ISP Putnamville Post, arrived. Barker indicated an alert on the vehicle.

A subsequent search of the vehicle led to the discovery that Lopez-Chacon was transporting 133 pounds of marijuana. Alvaro Lopez-Chacon was taken into custody and transported to the Morgan County Jail.

He was preliminarily charged with Level 5 felony dealing marijuana and Class B misdemeanor possession of marijuana.