Pot found in crashed truck

Estevan Marmolejo-Diaz did not have a valid driver’s license when he drove a pick-up truck into a remote Colusa County drainage ditch, so officers impounded his vehicle.

Later they found two pounds of processed marijuana in the truck bed.

The 28-year-old man, listed as a transient, was arrested Friday by the Colusa County Narcotics Enforcement Team on suspicion of possession of marijuana for sale and transporting marijuana. He was booked into Colusa County Jail on $17,500 bail.

Diaz sustained minor injuries to his legs, arm and hand in the crash. He had not been drinking, Officer Bob Kays of the California Highway Patrol said.

The CHP responded Friday morning to a report of a single vehicle accident on Highway 20, west of Williams.

They arrived to find a 2007 Nissan Frontier in the ditch.

Diaz told the officers he drifted off the road and was unable to pull the truck out of the ditch, Kays said.

“A license check showed that (Diaz) did not have a license and had already been cited for driving with a license once before, so they were going to impound the vehicle for 30 days,” Kays said.

Officers found about two pounds of processed marijuana wrapped in plastic bags and stuffed into a cardboard box in the truck bed, Kays said.

 “They also found the kind of stuff you’d expect to find on someone possibly harvesting, like camping equipment and food,” Kays said.

The case was turned over to the Colusa County Narcotics Enforcement Team.

CoCoNET Sgt. Dan Titus said investigators believe the suspect was transporting the pot for a friend and not part of an organized drug trafficking operation.

“He had no proof of legal medical marijuana use and was arrested at the scene,” Titus said.

The case remains under investigation.

An arraignment date was not available.

Contact Rob Parsons at 458-2121 or rparsons@tcnpress.com.