Cops have seized 273 pounds of marijuana on busy smuggling route this month alone

The I-80 corridor through Tooele County is becoming an increasingly busy route for smuggling marijuana, with law enforcement officials saying they average one or two busts per week on the stretch of interstate.

“We are not getting everyone though,” said Lt. Troy Marx with the Utah Highway Patrol. “We know that.”

Marx said the increase in pot smuggling on I-80 is a direct result of the legalization of marijuana for medicinal purposes in California. Most smugglers drive to California to purchase marijuana illegally, then transport the drug — often in large quantities — to states farther east.

“Before marijuana used to come from Mexico, so we’d see a lot of it on I-15, but now that it’s legalized in California, I-80 is the primary route,” Marx said.

The most recent bust on I-80 occurred Saturday evening when a 56-year-old California woman was arrested near the Tooele County line after a UHP trooper discovered 162 pounds of marijuana in the bed of her pickup.

Deborah Schlosser, of Ukiah, Calif., was traveling eastbound on the interstate in a charcoal gray Toyota Tundra when the vehicle swerved across the road to the left and into the emergency lane, then back into the travel lane just after 8 p.m. near milepost 102. This maneuver was noticed by a UHP trooper patrolling the area, who then initiated a traffic stop, according to Sgt. Larry Mower of the Utah Highway Patrol’s Salt Lake County office.

Schlosser told the trooper that she was en route to Minneapolis, Minn., to visit family.

“The details she was giving about her visit just didn’t make sense, so that’s when the trooper became suspicious and pulled his dog out,” Mower said.

Tank, a UHP K9, circled around the exterior of the vehicle and signaled the presence of narcotics in the back bed.

The trooper then approached Schlosser again and asked permission to search the vehicle, Mower said. Schlosser indicated that she would rather get back on the road and continue her long journey, but said she knew the officer would do what he felt necessary.

A search revealed six large duffle bags full of marijuana totaling 162 pounds.

“It had been vacuum-sealed so you really couldn’t smell it,” Mower said.

UHP estimates the drugs to be worth between $3,000 and $5,000 per pound — meaning the total value of the seizure could be as high as $810,000.

“It’s a higher-grade marijuana from the northern California area, so we believe it’s on the higher end as far as cost,” Mower said.

Schlosser, who refused to cooperate with investigators, was taken into custody and booked into the Salt Lake County Jail. She was charged with possession of a controlled substance with the intent to distribute and traveling in the improper lane.

Earlier this month, UHP seized 111 pounds of marijuana in two separate busts along the interstate as well. All four of the individuals involved are now facing felony charges.

All UHP troopers are trained to detect certain indicators of drug smuggling by asking a series of questions.

“[A drug smuggler] usually doesn’t have answers for all the specifics and as soon as they change their story a little bit then you are pretty sure that drugs are there,” Marx said.

If the trooper has a K9 riding along, then the dog will be brought out to sniff out the presence of narcotics. If not, a trooper can have one dispatched to the scene.

Marx said on average drug loads being transported along I-80 are between 40 and 100 pounds.

“But sometimes we find just a few pounds,” Marx added.

Despite the increase in I-80 drug trafficking through the county, Marx said residents aren’t at risk.

“The smugglers usually just want to get out of here as fast as they can,” Marx said. “They’ll stop for gas and they are gone. They don’t typically stick around because they are so scared of getting caught.”

Jamie Belnap: jamieb@tooeletranscript.com