On Tuesday, February 3, 2015, a 53 year old man in the Port St. Lucie area of Florida was arrested by investigators from the St. Lucie County Sheriff’s department. An affidavit that was released on Wednesday, February 4, 2015 reported that he was arrested as a result of receiving over 60 pounds of marijuana through the UPS.
The man, Justino Santana, who resides at the 1600 block of Southeast Seashore Lane in Port St. Lucie, Florida, was charged with trafficking marijuana that exceeds 25 pounds and attempting to run as well as resisting officers. While he tried to elude the police, he was not charged with any violence during the incident, which occurred in the early afternoon hours of February 3rd.
Officials at the Sheriff’s office learned last week from the United States Drug Enforcement Administration that a sizable narcotics trafficking organization was transporting considerably large amounts of marijuana from Arizona to the St. Lucie County region of Florida, according to an affidavit. As a result, investigators kept surveillance on the address to which the packages were shipped. The address belonged to a business in the 10200 block of Southeast Lennard Road.
During the surveillance activity, on Tuesday, February 3rd, Santana was seen loading the packages into a white Chevy van. When the investigators attempted to stop him, the man fled in the van and turned onto a plaza in the 10300 block of South U.S. 1 and quickly continued south.
Santana attempted to flee the van while it was continuing to move. The vehicle ended up crashing into a line of trees while investigators captured the man following a short chase on foot. Officials from the Sheriff’s office repaired that the marijuana shipments came to 66 pounds.
After his capture, Santana told police that he gets paid $900 to transport packages from the pickup spot to a warehouse in the Miami area, according to the affidavit. According to a jail official, as of February 4th, he was being held at the St. Lucie County Jail on a bail of $83,250.
If you are arrested under suspicion of drug trafficking or other drug related charges in Florida, you will need the services of a skilled Saint Lucie drug defense attorney. Jonathan Jay Kirschner, Esq. and Associates, LLC is a law firm that specializes in criminal defense. You can secure a Fort Pierce drug lawyer who will strive to get the charges against you reduced or dropped. Contact the office at your earliest convenience.
