Kentucky police discovered about 55 pounds of methamphetamine disguised as Christmas presents during a holiday drug bust.
Police in Jeffersontown, a Louisville suburb, found the illicit drugs during an investigation on Bluegrass Parkway on December 22, according to a police press release.
Detectives encountered Jacob Talamantes, a 23-year-old from Nebraska, while he exited a vehicle. He reportedly tried to walk away from the authorities, but officers detained him.
While smelling the outside of the vehicle, a police K9 unit signaled to officers that narcotics were present. Officers opened the trunk and discovered over half a dozen boxes wrapped in Christmas paper, which they said contained “suspected methamphetamine.”
Photos posted by police show cardboard boxes, discarded wrapping paper and about 20 plastic bags filled with a white-colored substance.
According to police, Talamantes said he had traveled from Iowa and was intending to traffic the meth.
Talamantes was arrested and charged with first-degree trafficking in a controlled substance. Other charges could be added as the probe continues.
The investigation was aided by the Kentucky State Police and the Drug Enforcement Administration, police said.
"No amount of festive wrapping can disguise the harm these drugs inflict on families and communities,” Jeffersontown Police Chief Richard Sanders said in the release. “The coordinated efforts of partner agencies ensured these holiday-wrapped packages never reached the streets.”
It’s not the first time such a stunt has been pulled.
Last December, a Canadian woman was arrested after she tried to bring meth wrapped up as a Christmas present through an airport in New Zealand.
