MISSOURI STATE HIGHWAY PATROL
a division of the
DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY

Troop E Headquarters - 4947 Highway 67 North - Poplar Bluff, MO 63901


News Release

For further information please contact: Sergeant Dale H. Moreland
(573) 840-9500
E020805
February 8, 2010

EMPHASIS: Traffic Stop On Interstate 55 Results In Drug Arrest


On February 7, 2010, at approximately 7:00 p.m., a Missouri State Highway Patrol commercial vehicle inspector while working at the E-2 North Weigh Station on Interstate 55 signaled a 2000 Kenworth truck pulling a box trailer to stop at the weigh station.
The driver, Renaldo M. Martinez, 47, of Dallas, Texas, stopped at the weigh station, but then attempted to leave prior to contact by the inspector. The driver was then instructed to stop and provide the necessary paperwork for review. Due to the driver’s suspicious behavior, the commercial vehicle inspector contacted a trooper for assistance. During the course of the inspection the trooper obtained permission to search the vehicle and located 3,669 pounds of marijuana in the trailer. The driver, Renaldo M. Martinez, and passenger, Xavier Avila, 23, also of Dallas, Texas, were arrested for felony possession of controlled substance with intent to distribute and possession of more than 35 grams of marijuana, and taken to the Pemiscot County Jail.
The charges for which Martinez and Avila were arrested are mere accusation and not evidence of guilt. Evidence in support of the charges must be presented before a court of competent jurisdiction whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.


(###)