The Arizona Department of Public Safety seized more than 4,000 pounds of marijuana from a truck during a traffic stop near Tucson, the largest of 10 significant seizures by DPS officers in the last eight days.
The 4,300 pound seizure was uncovered by a K-9 unit in a commercial semi-truck and has a street value of about $2.1 million, DPS Director Frank Milstead said Friday.
“The use of narcotics is crippling society,” Milstead said. “It is our job in law enforcement to provide that interdiction to try to keep as much out as possible.”
He said gaps in parenting and schooling have contributed to the demand for drugs.
Since March 4, DPS has seized 1,610 pounds of marijuana, about 25 pounds of methamphetamine, 10 pounds of cocaine and nearly $81,000, he said.
Milstead said DPS continues to see a lot of high-grade marijuana seized, despite indications that traffickers are shifting away from the drug.
Tempe Police Chief Tom Ryff said last week that drug cartels appear to be moving less marijuana in favor of smuggling stronger drugs like methamphetamine and heroin. Tempe Police, the DEA and the Arizona Attorney General’s Office came to this conclusion during a 30-month investigation into a drug trafficking network that spans from Sinaloa, Mexico, to Indianapolis.
Milstead said interdiction is a priority, and DPS will continue to work with county and federal officials.
“In my 30 years of law enforcement, I have never seen an agency that was so keenly aware and so expertly trained to identify those vehicles,” said Milstead, who was chief of Mesa Police when appointed as DPS director in January.
