Overview
- Troopers stopped a blue 2020 Kenworth semi on US 281 near George West at about 3:30 p.m. Wednesday during an Operation Lone Star patrol.
- A Live Oak County Sheriff’s Office K-9 alerted to the trailer, prompting a deeper search by troopers and DPS Criminal Investigations Division agents.
- Investigators uncovered a false floor concealing 479 black tape-wrapped bundles weighing 1,980 pounds with an estimated street value of about $3.4 million.
- The driver, Diego Mendez, 32, of Alton, was arrested and booked into the Live Oak County Jail on a first-degree felony charge for possession over 400 grams.
- DPS says the load was headed to Dallas and the broader investigation into the source and distribution links remains ongoing.