A trucker was arrested recently when police found 205 pounds of cocaine valued at more than $2 million in his trailer.
Police arrested 27-year-old Kawal P. Singh who police said was hauling the cocaine from Laredo, Texas, to Michigan.
At about 12:20 a.m. Oct. 31, Michigan State Police troopers stopped a tractor-trailer for traffic violations in St. Clair County’s Kimball Township north of Detroit.
Singh provided troopers with a manifest stating he was hauling “non corrugated folding cartons” from Laredo to Belleville, Ontario, Canada, according to federal officials.
Department of Homeland Security agents arrived to assist troopers, accompanied by a narcotics sniffing K-9. The dog displayed “alert behavior” near the trailer’s rear door and back panels, according to officials.
Agents opened the trailer and found two trash bags and two duffle bags separate from the pallets of valid cargo. Police said the four bags contained numerous cellophane-wrapped and vacuum-sealed bricks of a powdery white substance.
Police took Singh to the St. Clair Sheriff’s Office for an interview. Singh waived his Miranda rights and said he picked up the trailer in Laredo. The trailer had been loaded before Singh arrived, the driver said.
Singh on Monday, Nov. 2, had his initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Elizabeth A. Stafford, who informed him federal prosecutors charged him with possessing with intent to distribute more than 5 kilos of cocaine.
Singh consented to being held in custody pending trial. His case is scheduled for a preliminary examination on Nov. 16.
