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DEA Nabs Trucker With 800 Pounds Of Pot After He Brags About Making $2 Per Mile

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A Florida truck driver is facing numerous serious charges after he bragged to a waitress about his suspiciously lucrative load, leading an informant to tip off the DEA.

Truck Driver Brag Leads To DEA Tip

Truck driver Michael Liegakos is facing three felony charges for possessing a controlled substance with intent to traffic and one misdemeanor DUI charge following his May 29 arrest. All three felony charges carry a maximum penalty of five years in prison.

Liegakos’s arrest came after a DEA informant allegedly overheard him telling a waitress at a bar in Butte that he was making as much as $14,000 per round trip hauling shipping container. Liegakos also reportedly bragged that he didn’t have any shipping papers.

The informant contacted the DEA, who in turn contacted the Wyoming Highway Patrol. The DEA also told Wyoming troopers that the truck driver was en route to Long Island. A trooper staked out Highway 212 in case the truck took that route toward New York. Around 4 p.m. on May 29, a truck matching the description of the Liegakos’s truck appeared on Highway 212 and the trooper pulled it over after he reportedly observed numerous lane violations.

Trooper: $2 Per Mile Is “Nearly Unheard Of”

Liegakos allegedly told the trooper that he did not have shipping papers because the company did not provide him with any. However, he told the trooper that he hauled used car parts from Oregon to New York twice a month, making around $24,000 per month.

The trooper became suspicious when he calculated that Liegakos was driving 12,000 miles per month and making $2 per mile. According to the trooper’s report, “The average break even price to operate a truck is $0.36 per mile, which includes paying a driver. $1 per mile is considered excellent pay for a load. $2 per mile is a nearly unheard of price in the trucking industry.”

The trooper also noticed an odor of alcohol on Liegakos. He failed a field sobriety tests and was placed under arrest. His BAC was four times the legal limit for a commercial vehicle driver.

The truck was towed to a WYDOT location and, after a search warrant was obtained, police discovered 800 pounds of illegal drugs, including marijuana, THC edibles, THC infused liquids, and THC infused vapor cartridges.

 

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