Michigan State Police seize over 200 pounds marijuana, $346K in cash during traffic stop

Michigan State Police seized over 200 pounds of marijuana and $346,000 in cash after a commercial vehicle traffic stop on Monday, just past a truck weigh station in Monroe County's Erie Township. 

The truck driver was taken into custody and lodged at the Monroe County Jail, troopers said. 

State police said an officer from the Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Division ran a traffic stop on a 2023 Freightliner tractor-trailer after the driver bypassed the weigh station pullover. The southbound I-75 weigh station is between Exit 9 / Swan Creek Road and Exit 6 / Luna Pier Road. 

During the traffic stop, troopers said, the officer noticed signs of possible criminal activity and asked to search the vehicle. That search found what officers described as "a large amount of vacuum-sealed U.S. currency" hidden in the truck's sleeper berth. 

In response, the officer escorted the tractor-trailer back to the weigh station for a more thorough inspection. Detectives from the Monroe Area Narcotics Team and Investigative Services (MANTIS) took over the search. As the investigation continued, law enforcement officers seized about 97 kilograms (213 pounds) of processed marijuana and a total of $346,000 in cash, all of which were in vacuum-sealed packages.

The commercial vehicle, which is owned by a company based in Bartlett, Tennessee, was traveling from California to New Jersey at the time of the traffic stop.  

The driver was lodged at the Monroe County Jail, pending review of possible charges by the Monroe County Prosecutor's Office.