Siskiyou County sheriff’s deputies arrested Shel Saunders, 55, of Fort Bragg, after a traffic stop on a van carrying 1,363 pounds (about 618 kg) of illegally cultivated marijuana flower and $253,870 in cash.[1] Saunders was driving a sprinter van holding 74 bags of marijuana and $253,870 in U.S. currency when deputies pulled him over for a traffic violation.[1] The sheriff’s office said the marijuana came from the Mount Shasta Vista area, an unincorporated community in eastern Siskiyou County.[2]

A probable-cause search found no paperwork or licence showing the marijuana was legally grown or certified for sale on the legal market.[1] Deputies also found a .40 calibre Smith & Wesson handgun in the van’s engine compartment.[1] The sheriff’s office said it believed the cash came from sales of the illicit marijuana.[1]

Saunders was booked into the Siskiyou County jail on charges of transporting and possessing marijuana for sale.[2] The sheriff’s office released its account of the case on 27 January, eleven days later; Mendocino Coast News reported the arrest took place on 16 January and noted the press release gave no date.[3] The same outlet said a check of the county’s jail-population search showed Saunders was no longer in custody and raised questions about the reported weight, which it said the photo did not support; no court outcome has been reported.[3]