Cocaine

MICHIGAN CITY - A big drug bust in Michigan City has landed two men behind bars. It's part of an investigation by the Street Crimes Unit and U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency into large quantities of cocaine distributed in the area. Police say Francisco Huerta-Perez and Gabriel Ramirez were arrested in the area of 6 th and Wabash Streets, and recovered in the bust were more than two pounds of cocaine worth over $100,000. During a search of Huerta-Perez' home, more drugs and cash were found.

After Indiana State Police pulled over a car transport trailer about a week ago, they made an interesting discovery – kilos of cocaine hidden in one of the luxury cars on the transport. Now, police say they have found more. Trooper Mick Dockery and his K-9 partner Hondo found 29 kilos of cocaine hidden in a 2007 Mercedes Benz S550 – the car valued at $100,000 and the cocaine valued at about $1,000,000– after stopping the transport near the Elkhart exit of the Indiana Toll Road.

GOSHEN, Ind. (AP) - A Goshen man faces drug charges after authorities who raided his home say they found $150,000 worth of cocaine inside. Chief Investigator Ed Windbigler of the Elkhart County Prosecutor's office says 32-year-old Martin Garcia-Rodriguez was ordered held Thursday on a $150,000 bond and remained in the county jail. An initial hearing has been set for March 21. It was unclear if Garcia-Rodriguez has hired an attorney. He's charged with possession of cocaine with intent to deliver.

Police in Kosciusko and Elkhart counties have arrested a man accused of being a large supplier of cocaine in the area, the Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Department says in a news release. Police arrested Jose Villa Jr., 19, about 11 p.m. Wednesday at the Whispering Pines Trailer Court in Warsaw. He has been charged preliminarily with felony dealing cocaine. His bond was preliminarily set at $20,000 Thursday morning. Kosciusko County Sheriff Rocky Goshert says that during the investigation, Villa was found to be in the United States illegally.

KOSCIUSKO COUNTY - Police say a Silver Lake man was arrested late Monday night after he allegedly sold cocaine to an undercover officer. According to police, 36-year-old Fernando Ortiz Paredes was arrested at his home in the 3000 block of Meyrtle Glen Drive after police obtained a warrant. An anonymous tip, police say, said that Paredes was selling cocaine in Kosciusko County. Police were able to track and confirm the information prior to the arrest. Paredes is being preliminarily charged with dealing cocaine, police say. His bond is set for $50,000 and is currently still at the Kosciusko County Jail.

South Bend police arrested a 43-year-old convicted felon early Friday on charges of dealing cocaine and possessing a gun without a permit within 1,000 feet of a school. The man was apprehended as he walked near Washington High School, police said. Police were searching for him after his girlfriend called police claiming he had been threatening her with a gun. They found the man a few blocks away. He had a pistol on his right hip and 58 grams of crack cocaine in his pocket, police said.

BRIDGEPORT, Conn. (AP) - A Connecticut mother is charged with forcing her 4-year-old son to drink beer and giving beer and cocaine to her 10-month-old daughter. The Connecticut Post reports that 29-year-old Juliette Dunn was arrested on June 28 after a neighbor flagged down police and told them the woman was feeding beer to her children at the Success Village playground in Bridgeport. Dunn and a 33-year-old companion, Lisa Jefferson, were arrested and charged with assault and risk of injury to a minor.

Police say a man was convicted last Friday night for having 40 kilos of cocaine hidden in a Rolls Royce and Mercedes Benz he was transporting in his semi trailer. The street value of the drugs was over $4 million. The conviction of Patrick Austin stems from an Indiana State Police stop on the Indiana Toll Road back in April. A trooper noticed something on Austin's trailer didn't match his truck, and when they ran his info they saw his name placed on a list of possible drug transporters.  Two years ago, Austin was caught with $1 Million in cash hidden in cars he was transporting on his semi, but investigators couldn't prove that money was drug-related.

A man and woman were arrested Monday after police found large amounts of high-grade marijuana, cocaine and several thousand dollars at a residence in the 1200 block of West Jefferson Street. The Neighborhood Enforcement Service Team Street Crimes Unit, a specialty unit of the South Bend Police Uniform Patrol Division, also found items used for measuring, weighing, packaging, distributing and using drugs during the search. Joe Hudson and Tiffany Mays were arrested on charges of dealing and possession cocaine and marijuana and maintaining a common nuisance.

A routine traffic stop by Indiana State Police on the Toll Road Thursday night turned out to be anything but routine. About 6:45 p.m., Trooper Jerry George stopped a 2004 Ford Expedition in the eastbound lane at mile marker 25 in Portage. A search done on the vehicle revealed a hidden compartment. Portage Police Officer William Smith and his K-9 Fax detected drugs in the compartment. Porter County Courts issued a search warrant for the compartment in the rear of the vehicle and there, police found 14 brick-shaped packages containing cocaine, according to an Indiana State Police news release issued Saturday.

LAGRANGE COUNTY -  An seemingly confused Pennsylvania man is behind bars in LaGrange County after claiming he was lost and then was busted for drugs. County police late Monday night were called to the area of 5250 W. State Road 120 for a suspicious vehicle with a suspicious person that appeared to be trying to get into a home. When officers got to the scene, they found the suspect had left the road and had a minor car crash. The man was soon identified as Ryan Chiappeta, 24, of Beaver Falls, Pa. Police say Chiappeta claimed he was lost and thought he was at his girlfriend's home in Pennsylvania.

GOSHEN, Ind. (AP) - A Goshen man faces drug charges after authorities who raided his home say they found $150,000 worth of cocaine inside. Chief Investigator Ed Windbigler of the Elkhart County Prosecutor's office says 32-year-old Martin Garcia-Rodriguez was ordered held Thursday on a $150,000 bond and remained in the county jail. An initial hearing has been set for March 21. It was unclear if Garcia-Rodriguez has hired an attorney. He's charged with possession of cocaine with intent to deliver.

MICHIGAN CITY - A big drug bust in Michigan City has landed two men behind bars. It's part of an investigation by the Street Crimes Unit and U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency into large quantities of cocaine distributed in the area. Police say Francisco Huerta-Perez and Gabriel Ramirez were arrested in the area of 6 th and Wabash Streets, and recovered in the bust were more than two pounds of cocaine worth over $100,000. During a search of Huerta-Perez' home, more drugs and cash were found.

CHELSEA, Mich. (AP) - An 87-year-old Michigan City man caught in Michigan last year with more than 200 pounds of cocaine has been hit with new charges that describe him as a very experienced drug mule for a Mexican cartel. A federal indictment filed this week says Leo Sharp was responsible for transporting more than 1,400 pounds of cocaine to Michigan in 2009-2011. The Michigan City, Ind., man was arrested in October on Interstate 94 near Chelsea, 60 miles west of Detroit.

KOSCIUSKO COUNTY - Police say a Silver Lake man was arrested late Monday night after he allegedly sold cocaine to an undercover officer. According to police, 36-year-old Fernando Ortiz Paredes was arrested at his home in the 3000 block of Meyrtle Glen Drive after police obtained a warrant. An anonymous tip, police say, said that Paredes was selling cocaine in Kosciusko County. Police were able to track and confirm the information prior to the arrest. Paredes is being preliminarily charged with dealing cocaine, police say. His bond is set for $50,000 and is currently still at the Kosciusko County Jail.

Police say a man was convicted last Friday night for having 40 kilos of cocaine hidden in a Rolls Royce and Mercedes Benz he was transporting in his semi trailer. The street value of the drugs was over $4 million. The conviction of Patrick Austin stems from an Indiana State Police stop on the Indiana Toll Road back in April. A trooper noticed something on Austin's trailer didn't match his truck, and when they ran his info they saw his name placed on a list of possible drug transporters.  Two years ago, Austin was caught with $1 Million in cash hidden in cars he was transporting on his semi, but investigators couldn't prove that money was drug-related.

BRIDGEPORT, Conn. (AP) - A Connecticut mother is charged with forcing her 4-year-old son to drink beer and giving beer and cocaine to her 10-month-old daughter. The Connecticut Post reports that 29-year-old Juliette Dunn was arrested on June 28 after a neighbor flagged down police and told them the woman was feeding beer to her children at the Success Village playground in Bridgeport. Dunn and a 33-year-old companion, Lisa Jefferson, were arrested and charged with assault and risk of injury to a minor.

ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — Federal court records show a Canadian man arrested during a traffic stop in Ann Arbor had 10 kilograms of cocaine and four of his children in his van. The man was arrested Monday night after a stop by a Michigan State Police trooper. According to an affidavit by DEA Special Agent Michael Brouillard, the suspect told agents a man paid him $3,900 to drive to Los Angeles to pick up an unknown quantity of cocaine, promising him an additional $2,000 provided he successfully delivered it to an undisclosed location.

After Indiana State Police pulled over a car transport trailer about a week ago, they made an interesting discovery – kilos of cocaine hidden in one of the luxury cars on the transport. Now, police say they have found more. Trooper Mick Dockery and his K-9 partner Hondo found 29 kilos of cocaine hidden in a 2007 Mercedes Benz S550 – the car valued at $100,000 and the cocaine valued at about $1,000,000– after stopping the transport near the Elkhart exit of the Indiana Toll Road.

A routine traffic stop by Indiana State Police on the Toll Road Thursday night turned out to be anything but routine. About 6:45 p.m., Trooper Jerry George stopped a 2004 Ford Expedition in the eastbound lane at mile marker 25 in Portage. A search done on the vehicle revealed a hidden compartment. Portage Police Officer William Smith and his K-9 Fax detected drugs in the compartment. Porter County Courts issued a search warrant for the compartment in the rear of the vehicle and there, police found 14 brick-shaped packages containing cocaine, according to an Indiana State Police news release issued Saturday.