Troopers seize $200K in cocaine in traffic stop
Third Major Bust Of The Year
By BRENDA SOMMER bsommer@leader-news.com

ANOTHER BUST: These 10 bundles containing 22 pounds of cocaine were found by DPS troopers in a secret compartment of a Ford Taurus stopped Saturday for speeding in El Campo. The drugs were confiscated and two men jailed on charges of possession with the intent to distribute. Contributed Photo

Troopers at the Pierce Department of Public Safety office made their third major drug-related seizure of the year Saturday when they found cocaine hidden in a secret compartment underneath a sedan.

On Saturday, Feb. 2, at a little before 8 p.m., Trooper Jose Mena pulled over a 2000 Ford Taurus for speeding. The car was heading along U.S. 59 North near El Campo and was stopped at South Meadow Lane.

Inside the car were the driver, Angel Gabriel Polanco, 19, of Marietta, Ga., and passenger Gedyon Woldemariam, 19, of Atlanta, Ga., who told troopers they'd left Laredo headed for Atlanta.

"After talking with the subjects, several indicators of criminal activity were detected," Sgt. Danny Terronez said. Those indicators included extreme nervousness and inconsistent stories about where they'd been and where they were going.

The men told Mena he could search their car.

Trooper Mena was joined by Terronez, Trooper David Chauvin and Trooper Michael Hubenak and his K-9 partner Eric. Terronez said they took the car to the Wharton City Barn, which has a car lift, so they could get a good look at the sedan's underside.

"The search led to the discovery of 16 bundles of cocaine located in the vehicle's structure, in a compartment behind the rear axle," Terronez said.

Those bundles contained 10 kilograms, or 22 pounds, of cocaine worth $200,000, he said.

Polanco and Woldemariam were each arrested on a charge of possession of a controlled substance with the intent to distribute and taken to Wharton County Jail, where each was held on $400,000 bond.

Their vehicle is in process of being seized, Terronez said.

Officers from the Wharton Police Department and the Wharton County Sheriff's Office also assisted with the case, Terronez said.

"Once again, working with other local law enforcement agencies makes our jobs a lot easier," Terronez said. "We need all the help we can get."

DPS-Pierce troopers already have had a busy 2008, confiscating $1.337 million in cocaine and $65,000 in drug-related money along U.S. 59.

On Jan. 23, Trooper Stephen Pierce stopped an SUV for speeding near Louise and found 12 bundles of cash totaling $65,283 in suspected drug money.

And on Jan. 13, Trooper Alfred Ochoa stopped a tractor-trailer rig on U.S. 59 near Louise. Inside, troopers found 65 kilograms - 143 pounds - of cocaine in 50 separate bundles. The street value of those drugs was estimated at $1.137 million.

U.S. 59 is a well-known corridor for both drugs and money derived from criminal enterprises.

In 2007, DPS Pierce troopers nabbed at least 22 pounds of cocaine, 46 pounds of marijuana, $113,635 in suspected drug cash and 1,000 tablets of Xanax in busts along U.S. 59 in Wharton County.

In January 2006 state troopers arrested a Corpus Christi couple after a wild chase through town during which they allegedly tossed 2 kilos (4.4 pounds) of cocaine from their pickup.

Also during that year, more marijuana was seized by state troopers in Wharton County - 10,066 pounds. - than in any other of Texas' 254 counties, comprising 10.5 percent of the statewide total of 95,653 pounds.

As well, troopers seized $4.3 million in suspicious money in Wharton County in 2006, about a fifth of the $20.874,816.37 seized in Texas in 2006.

In 2005, troopers from the Pierce DPS office seized at least 32 kilos of cocaine and $2.8 million in alleged drug money during stops along U.S. 59.