Idaho State Police seize narcotics after pursuit near Pocatello

Pocatello, ID (CBS2) — A late-night attempted traffic stop near Pocatello led to a vehicle pursuit and the seizure of multiple pounds of narcotics, according to the Idaho State Police Domestic Highway Enforcement team.

Just before 12 a.m. on May 18, a DHE trooper patrolling Interstate 86 saw a sedan with California license plates turn northbound onto Interstate 15 without signaling. When the trooper tried to stop the car near milepost 74 in Bannock County, the driver did not yield, and a pursuit began.

Police said the pursuit went through a construction zone where traffic was diverted onto the southbound U.S. Highway 91. During the chase, 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 deployed spike strips, stopping the car. The driver, a 40-year-old man from Fargo, North Dakota, was arrested without further incident.

Troopers searched the vehicle and found about 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. “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.”

ISP said its Domestic Highway Enforcement team is part of Gov. Brad Little’s Esto Perpetua initiative and is a multijurisdictional narcotics task force made up of 14 troopers, including seven canine handlers, stationed throughout Idaho. The agency said the team combats emerging criminal trends using advanced interdiction techniques, intelligence-driven enforcement, and partnerships with local prosecutors and allied agencies.

The team is supported through the Oregon-Idaho High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area program and also works through an Office of National Drug Control Policy-sponsored counterdrug grant program that coordinates with and provides funding for multiagency drug enforcement initiatives, ISP said.