Feds investigate after as much as 24,000 pounds of suspected marijuana detected during traffic stop

Multiple agencies have responded to a semi truck traffic stop in Oklahoma for what could be a major drug bust — but the truck driver says that it is all just a major misunderstanding.

The incident began around 3 a.m. on Wednesday, January 9, on Pawhuska, Oklahoma, according to reporting from News on 6.

Police pulled over a semi truck and a minivan after they reportedly observed both running a red light.

When officers approached the truck, they said that they smelled an odor of marijuana coming from the vehicle.

The semi truck driver and passenger told police that they were hauling industrial hemp from Kentucky to Colorado. They also said that the men in the minivan were acting as security for the semi truck.

The truck driver showed police a bill of lading which indicated that the contents of the trailer was 18,000 to 24,000 pounds of marijuana stored in 60 containers.

The officers said that something seemed off about the bill of lading and claimed that the four men’s stories did not add up. Police also said that the truck driver did not have a permit to haul marijuana or hemp through Oklahoma, though Pawhuska Police Chief Rex Wickle admits that since medical marijuana is now legal, there is some uncertainty about the legality of transporting it through the state.

All four men were taken into police custody.

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Oklahoma Highway Patrol, Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics, and the Osage County Sheriff’s Office are all on scene assisting the Pawhuska Police in they investigation.

This is a developing story.

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