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When deputies asked 21-year-old Ruben Orozco what he was doing in an Athens restaurant parking lot on Monday afternoon, he told them he was waiting for a friend to eat lunch.
The explanation sounded a little fishy to Limestone County Sheriff’s Lt. Lance Royals and Deputy Justin Flanagan, who noticed Orozco had a fresh plate of chicken or shrimp with lettuce and carrots and what appeared to be a foil-wrapped baked potato in his 1999 silver Mustang.
Turned out, the “baked potato” was 5 ounces of uncut cocaine valued at more than $6,000, Royals said.
The uneaten meal was not the only clue deputies had to go on.
“We had received information that he was transporting illegal drugs, so we set up surveillance,” Royals said. “We saw a vehicle matching his at Mexico Lindo on Jefferson Street. He came out of the restaurant and went to the Family Dollar and never did leave (the restaurant parking lot). He kept walking around and got back in his car, so we made contact with him and asked him what he was doing.”
The restaurant played no part in the alleged crime. Authorities said Orozco brought the cocaine with him in his car and apparently planned to meet with the buyer in the lot.
“He was there to do a drug transaction but he failed to make the transaction because his buyer didn’t show up,” Royals said.
After answering a few questions, Orozco gave deputies permission to search his car.
“He didn’t think we’d notice it,” Royals said of the foil wrapper. “When we opened it and found the cocaine, he said it wasn’t his.”
Orozco was charged with trafficking cocaine and, later, with giving false information for telling deputies his name was Adrian Barragan and that he was homeless. He remained in the Limestone County Jail Tuesday. A judge will set bond once Orozco gives authorities his address, which is believed to be in Huntsville. Because Orozco is in the country illegally, Limestone will notify Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials to see if they want him, Royals said.
When asked what prompted deputies to search what simply looked like a baked potato, Royals said, “If they can conceal drugs in it, we look there.”
It is not unusual for a suspect to try to secret drugs, and they are continually devising new ways to do it, said Richard Johnson, a police officer and trainer in Tampa Bay, Fla., and contributor to the Web site Blue Sheepdog, a site offering training and officer survival tips at www.bluesheepdog.com:
• Contraband hidden in a woman’s wig.
• Bags of heroin secreted in teddy bears.
• Marijuana concealed in the hollowed out boards of wooden pallets.
• Cocaine masked in the soles of shoes.
• Marijuana bundles tucked in artificial landscaping stones.
• Drugs stashed in the manifold of an engine.
• Marijuana hidden in metal cans disguised as food
Local News
Related Photos
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This photograph shows how the meal looked before deputies investigated inside what appears to be a foil-wrapped baked potato. Courtesy photo
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This photo shows how it looked after the foil was peeled back to expose 5 ounces of uncut cocaine that deputies say is worth more than $6,000. Courtesy photo
Discussion
'Potato' in lunch conceals cocaine
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