Police: Routine traffic stop ends with two arrests, plenty of blow
Boston Police report officers who stopped a car with a busted brake light at East Cottage and Batchelder streets in Dorchester yesterday wound up arresting its two occupants after a drug-sniffing dog went nuts and a search warrant let them into the car, where they found a pound of cocaine.
Police say driver Jose Maldonado, 34, of Providence, and local passenger Firpo Pimentel, 34, were both charged with trafficking cocaine.
Maldonado was also charged with operating without a license and possession of a forged Registry document, police say. Police say officers pulled the car over around 11 a.m. when they noticed a broken brake light.
Maldonado handed over what appeared to be a forged license - with a photo that didn't look anything like him - police say, adding that while talking to the pair, officers noticed "alterations and modifications to the vehicle often associated with hides or hiding places used in the trafficking of illegal drugs."
That's when they brought in Koda the drug-sniffing dog, police say. In addition to the cocaine, found in several plastic bags, police also seized $18,500 in cash.
Innocent, etc.
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Comments
That intersection
is East Cottage & Batchelder.
Rookie Mistake
Lesson: if you're going to transport A POUND of cocaine, make sure your vehicle is in top-notch condition.
Also, is it standard procedure these days to have a drug sniffing dog present at traffic stops, or did BPD suspect something and call one in?
Dog was called in after the stop was made
And after police noticed what looked like possible hidey-holes built into the car. Sorry for the shorthand writing there.