For further information please contact: Sergeant Dan Crain
573-368-2345
I02D07
February 7, 2007

EMPHASIS: Patrol Makes Large Cocaine Seizure on I-44


At approximately 1:50 p.m., February 2, 2007, Missouri State Highway Patrol Commercial Motor Vehicle Officers stopped a 1991 Chevrolet flatbed truck for an equipment violation, as it was eastbound on I-44, at the St. James Interchange in Phelps County. Following the traffic stop, a state trooper responded to assist the officers. Further investigation revealed two diesel engines that contained 149 bundles of cocaine, which weighed approximately 381 lbs. The Drug Enforcement Administration estimated the street value of the seized cocaine at somewhere between 15 and 20 million dollars.
The driver, Francisco R. Grijalva, 26 of Yuma, Arizona and passenger, Myrna Ochoa, 44 of San Luis, Mexico, were both arrested for felony drug trafficking in the first degree. Assisting in this investigation were the Missouri State Highway Patrol’s Division of Drug and Crime Control and the Drug Enforcement Administration.
The charges for which Grijalva and Ochoa have been arrested are mere accusations and are 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.
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