Domestic Highway Enforcement team seizes large quantity of narcotics following pursuit near Pocatello

The Idaho State Police Domestic Highway Enforcement team seized a large quantity of narcotics following a vehicle pursuit near Pocatello, a Wednesday press release said.

Just before midnight on May 18, a DHE trooper patrolling Interstate 86 observed a sedan with California license plates turn northbound onto Interstate 15 without signaling. When the trooper attempted a traffic stop near milepost 74 in Bannock County, the driver failed to yield, prompting a pursuit.

The pursuit continued through a construction zone, where traffic was diverted onto southbound U.S. Highway 91. During the pursuit, the sedan used the right shoulder to pass several semi-trucks, struck a construction sign, and ignored directions from a construction flagging crew. 

The vehicle continued toward the Fort Hall Indian Reservation, where the Fort Hall Police Department successfully deployed spike strips, bringing the vehicle to a stop, the release said.

The driver, a 40-year-old man from Fargo, North Dakota, was arrested without further incident.

Troopers searched the vehicle and located approximately one pound of fentanyl powder, two pounds of methamphetamine, more than two pounds of cocaine, and one-half pound of marijuana.

The driver was booked into the Bingham County Jail on probable cause for trafficking fentanyl, trafficking methamphetamine, trafficking cocaine, felony possession of marijuana, and felony eluding.

“This seizure highlights the value of having a dedicated team focused on disrupting drug trafficking across Idaho,” Lt. Ryan Hoxie said in the release. “Through support of Gov. Little’s Esto Perpetua initiative, DHE proactively targets the criminal organizations bringing dangerous narcotics into our state. These drugs continue to devastate Idaho families and communities, and our troopers work every day to identify traffickers, stop illegal drugs from reaching our communities, and arrest offenders.”