Large quantities of several hard drugs were seized during a traffic stop by Anderson Police Wednesday night. A little before midnight, an officer pulled over a Nissan Altima on northbound Interstate 5 near the Balls Ferry Road exit. The driver was 26-year-old Olvin Joel Hernandez-Mendez, who had no drivers license but had a Honduran identification card. Officers say they noticed what they call “numerous indicators consistent with drug trafficking” and they asked if they could search the car. After allegedly receiving permission, officers say they found a customized hidden compartment in the trunk that they pried open with tools. Inside they reported finding 7.2 pounds of fentanyl, 1.4 pounds of black tar heroin and 1.8 pounds of cocaine. Hernandez-Mendez is in jail on a half million dollars bail.
– Steve Gibson