The Ballard County Sheriff's Department says a vehicle with Texas plates came through a traffic safety checkpoint on U.S. Highway 51/60/62 near the entrance to Wickliffe Mounds at 11:37 pm. The driver gave deputies a Mexican driver's license, and the smell of marijuana was obvious to officers.
The driver was asked to step out of the vehicle, and a large object was spotted in the back seat. Deputies determined it was a 20 pound bale of marijuana. A vehicle search revealed a total of eight bales, weighing a total of 230 pounds.
The estimated street value of the drugs was $460,000.
The driver of the vehicle, 27-year-old Gael Martinez, and his passenger, 23-year-old Herverth Porfirio, both of Dallas, were arrested for trafficking over five pounds of marijuana. They were taken to the Ballard County Detention Center.