ST. GEORGE — An Illinois couple was booked into jail facing a felony and other charges after reportedly telling police they were driving cross country to return multiple pieces of U.S. mail to the rightful owners in Las Vegas during an early-morning traffic stop on Wednesday.
Shortly before 1:30 a.m. an officer noticed a vehicle heading west on St. George Boulevard. The vehicle came to a stop in the middle of the roadway, and according to the probable cause statements filed in support of the arrests, the driver then backed up for more than 100 feet before pulling into a motel parking lot.
When the officer approached the car, the report states that the driver, who police say initially provided a false name, said she had no photo identification because it had recently been stolen, and when one of the backup officers noted the strong odor of marijuana coming from inside of the vehicle, the passenger handed him a container of raw marijuana.
The driver told police she had a medical marijuana card but was unable to provide it.
During a search of the vehicle, officers found documents and a prescription bottle which accurately identified the driver as 31-year-old Bianca Feliciano, and when confronted, the suspect said she had initially provided officers with the name of her sister, according to police.
As the search progressed, officers also recovered multiple pieces of mail that were all opened, and in one of the parcels they found a certified check, while the other envelopes contained the personal identification information, including bank notices and insurance information that also included account numbers. The opened mail belonged to nine different individuals – none of whom were the two occupants in the vehicle.
When asked, the driver told officers that some of the mail belonged to family members, but admitted the other pieces of mail belonged to individuals she did not know, and went on to say the unknown individuals had left the mail in her car.
Feliciano also explained that she and the passenger were driving across country from their home in Chicago to Las Vegas so they could return the mail to the rightful owners.
When the officers ran a check no Feliciano’s license and learned it was suspended, she was arrested and booked into Purgatory Correctional Facility facing third-degree felony count of possession of personal identifying documents of multiple people, along with one count each of providing false information of a real person to police, operating a vehicle on a suspended license, possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia – each a misdemeanor. She also faces an infraction for improper lane travel and speeding.
Meanwhile, the passenger was identified as 33-year-old Christopher G. Jones, who was the registered owner of the vehicle.
While speaking to police, Jones confirmed he was aware there was mail belonging to other individuals in the car, after he had “placed it personally in the glove box where they were discovered,” the officer noted in the report.
Jones could not, however, provide any explanation as to why it was there, or why they were both in possession of such sensitive documents and information pertaining to multiple individuals Jones said he did not know.
He also said they were traveling to Las Vegas to return the mail, saying the mail belonged to one of the driver’s family members.
Jones also said he had insurance on the newly-purchased vehicle, but was unable to provide any proof to police, and when Jones explained that he and the driver made a combined income of $3,000, the officer found it “unusual” that the couple were “driving a newly purchased vehicle and traveling across the country.”
Jones was then arrested and booked into jail in Washington County facing third-degree felony possession of personal identifying documents of multiple people, as well as possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia.
The court granted a no bail hold on both, as they lived in Illinois and had no ties to the area. The order went on to state that both were on their way to Mexico when the traffic stop in St. George took place.
This report is based on statements from court records, police or other responders and may not contain the full scope of findings. Persons arrested or charged are presumed innocent until found guilty in a court of law or as otherwise decided by a trier-of-fact.
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