According to a news release from the Mississippi Department of Transportation, MDOT enforcement officers made a large marijuana bust in Lauderdale County Wednesday.
Officers stopped a 1999 Freightliner tractor and van about 3:45 p.m. at the inspection station on I-20/59 for a routine weight, safety and paperwork inspection.
Officers say they located 24 large plastic wrapped bundles of marijuana weighing approximately 500 pounds. The street value was estimated at $500,000.
The trailer was transporting black plastic pellets to Georgia.
Arturo Garcia, 35, of Channelview, Texas, was charged with possession of marijuana.
Officials say the source and destination of the marijuana is being investigated by the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics and MDOT Enforcement. The tractor and trailer were impounded.
