Indiana Truck Driver Arrested After Smuggling Nearly 300 LBS Of Cocaine From Memphis

Image Credit: Indiana State Police & Canva.

Article by Olivia Lupia, Tennessee Conservative News –

After pulling over a trailer truck for a routine traffic stop, Indiana police discovered the driver had stashed almost 300 pounds of cocaine from Memphis in his sleeper cab, totaling $3.8 million in value.

According to Indiana State Police, a trooper with the agency’s Criminal Interdiction Unit stopped the truck headed east on I-70 for a motor carrier compliance inspection after noticing the truck had expired International Fuel Tax Agreement (IFTA) decals. 

The driver, identified as Harpreet Singh of Greenwood, Indiana, told the trooper he was transporting an empty trailer to Indianapolis from Memphis, Tennessee after being told by company management to retrieve equipment at an unknown gas station, which his employer refuted. 

During his roadside examination, the trooper discovered additional compliance problems including an expired IFTA cab card which Singh said he was unaware was expired. Singh also reportedly told the trooper he was unable to use an electronic logging device (ELD) for hours-of-service records.

Finding Singh to be operating below industry standards, the trooper officially impounded the vehicle and called a towing company before doing an inventory search in the tractor cab where he discovered a blue duffel bag containing brick-like packages wrapped in black duct tape.

On the trooper’s suspicion of narcotics, police conducted a probable cause search of the truck cab, yielding at least five additional duffel bags stashed in various storage spaces around the sleeper berth. As the powder inside the bundles presumptively tested positive for cocaine, officers arrested Singh and transported him to the Putnam County Jail in Indiana. 

Prosecutors formally filed charges on Sept. 8, charging Singh with felonies for dealing and possession. The charging documents identified around 277 pounds of cocaine, a valuation of nearly $4 million.

Sources:

Freight Waves.

MSN.

WLFI.com.

Local 12.

Daily Journal.

About the Author: Olivia Lupia is a political refugee from Colorado who now calls Tennessee home. A proud follower of Christ, she views all political happenings through a Biblical lens and aims to utilize her knowledge and experience to educate and equip others. Olivia is an outspoken conservative who has run for local office, managed campaigns, and been highly involved with state & local GOPs, state legislatures, and other grassroots organizations and movements. Olivia can be reached at olivia@tennesseeconservativenews.com.