Karl W. Kruger was gone.

Not even his dad knew where he was.

But this week the Montana man was arrested in Washington on a governor’s warrant and shipped to the Kootenai County jail, where he faces heroin trafficking charges.

Kruger, 23, is charged with transporting more than an ounce of heroin west through North Idaho when he was stopped in September 2018 by state troopers at the Huetter rest area.

He had blood smears on his hands and pants, and a stolen .45 caliber handgun in his Subaru, police said.

Police said the globs of black tar heroin Kruger carried were individually wrapped like golf balls in plastic baggies.

He asked a magistrate to charge him for a smaller amount, instead of the 30 ½ grams, because trafficking more than 28 grams calls for a mandatory 15 years in prison, according to Idaho law.

The Garrison, Mont., man paid the $20,000 bail two years ago and returned more than six times to Coeur d’Alene from Montana for court hearings. He eventually pleaded not guilty and then disappeared.

At least for a while.

Last November, more than a year after his arrest and long after prosecutors offered Kruger a three-year mandatory minimum sentence as part of a plea deal — leaving the offer open for 30 days — Kruger dropped off the map.

Defense attorney Scot Nass said he had not been in contact with his client for months.

“His father does not know of his whereabouts as well,” Nass told the court.

But his arrest this week in Kittitas County, Wash., on the $50,000 warrant ensured Kruger would stay in jail at least for a while. He told the court he wouldn’t pursue extradition proceedings, meaning he would remain in Kootenai County to face the local charges.

In addition to the heroin and handgun, police found a dozen hypodermic needles, packages of baggies, scales, assorted paraphernalia, including a fake Arizona tea can with a hidden compartment, police said.

Kruger told the court Friday he would hire his own attorney. His next hearing in First District Court has not yet been scheduled.