Nebraska Troopers Seize Nearly 200 Pounds of Drugs in Two Interstate 80 Stops
Two separate traffic stops on I-80 this past week yielded marijuana and methamphetamine, and a State Patrol lieutenant says the seizures reflect the corridor's role in drug trafficking and the value of trooper training.
By Thabo Mokoena ·
Nebraska State Patrol troopers seized close to 200 pounds of illegal drugs during two separate traffic stops on Interstate 80 over the past week, according to reporting by KLKN-TV in Lincoln.
In the first case, troopers stopped a driver in central Nebraska and said they found 85 pounds of marijuana packed into trash bags in the trunk. In the second, troopers reported finding 110 pounds of methamphetamine concealed in suitcases in the trunk of another vehicle.
Lt. Paul Jacobson said he was taken aback by how much was recovered. "I know through training and experience, I-80 is a drug pipeline from West Coast to East Coast," he said. "So it's not surprising that it's out there, but the amount is surprising that they had in that car."
Even so, Jacobson said seizures of this size are not unusual on the interstate. The Department of Transportation says tens of thousands of drivers travel I-80 each day in the Lincoln area, giving traffickers a great deal of traffic to blend into.
The Midwest High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area, known as HIDTA, is a group of agencies that studies how drugs move through Nebraska and neighboring states. One of its reports found that in 2023 the region had more than 1,000 drug trafficking organizations with more than 8,500 members. Most of the drugs discovered were being moved in privately owned vehicles, the report showed.
Jacobson cautioned that troopers likely intercept only a portion of what passes through. "I always think for every one that we catch, there's probably several that get by," he said. He added that many of the "bad guys" train in how to avoid detection while smuggling drugs.
Still, he said the two stops show that trooper training is paying off, though more can always be done. When a seizure like these becomes known across the state, he said, every trooper notices.
"When something like this gets across the state, all of the troopers see it, and it's a win," Jacobson said. "It's a win for our agency, it's a win for Nebraska, for the citizens."
Originally published by News Media House · Source: KLKN-TV Channel 8
