ST. GEORGE — Two men are in jail after officers recovered suspected cocaine hidden in a metal beverage container that was concealed inside a toilet tank at a gas station on St. George Boulevard.
A red passenger car heading north on Interstate 15 on Friday evening caught the attention of a Washington City Police officer just as the vehicle was exiting the interstate at St. George Boulevard shortly after 9 p.m.
The vehicle continued west across the overpass towards North 1000 East in St. George where the driver made a left turn on 1000 East, nearly cutting off another motorist heading east through the intersection on a solid yellow traffic light, nearly causing a crash, the officer noted in the probable cause statement filed in support of the arrest.
After clearing the intersection, the suspect made an immediate right turn into the parking lot of the gas station on the corner of St. George Boulevard and 1000 East. Two men exited the car and headed into the minimart, while the officer was still stopped at the intersection waiting for the traffic light to turn green.
The officer pulled in and conducted a traffic stop just as the suspects were preparing to leave and identified the driver as Adrian Ulises Vazquez-Cardenas, 29, of Northlake, Illinois, who was issued a warning for failing to yield at the intersection minutes earlier.
While speaking to Cardenas and the passenger Juan Humberto Aguayo-Alvarez, 25, of Fresno, California, the officer became suspicious when he noticed several inconsistencies in the pair’s travel plans and asked if they would consent to a search of the vehicle, which they granted.
Officers found nothing illegal during the search and both occupants were released without incident. Minutes later, the officer received a call indicating that a large reusable metal water bottle had been found inside one of the rear toilet tanks in the restroom that appeared to be filled with “a large amount of narcotics,” according to the report.
While officers collected the metal bottle from the store, they were advised the red passenger car had been spotted by a Washington County Sheriff’s deputy a few blocks away, where Cardenas, the driver, was physically fighting with officers, the report alleges.
The altercation started when officers attempted to take the driver into custody, which is when a scuffle ensued. While officers were struggling with the driver who was arrested minutes later, the passenger got control of the car and sped off.
At that point, officers from multiple agencies started searching for Alverez who had fled the area in the red passenger car.
Since Alverez, the passenger, told the officer during the traffic stop that he was from California, one of the officers headed towards the interstate and headed south. Within minutes, the passenger car was spotted heading south, followed by the officer who was updating other officers of the suspect’s location while chasing the suspect with emergency lights and sirens activated.
Officers then conducted a high-risk stop less than a mile north of the Utah-Arizona border where Alverez was taken into custody at gunpoint without further incident.
Both suspects were arrested and then questioned by Homeland Security agents, during which the driver said it was he who had hidden the metal container in the back of the toilet tank at the gas station.
Both men reportedly told agents they had purchased the suspected cocaine in California for $5,000 and were on their way to Chicago, Illinois, where they planned to resell the drugs. A field test later confirmed the package contained cocaine with a total weight of one pound.
Cardenas and Alverez were then transported to Purgatory Correctional Facility and booked into jail facing one second-degree felony count of possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance and third-degree felony evading. Cardenas faces an additional misdemeanor count of interfering with a peace officer.
Officers also noted that neither suspect has any family or other ties to the area, and combined with the seriousness of the crimes alleged in the report, authorities asked that both be held without bail. The request was granted and the suspects remain in custody on a no-bail hold at this time.
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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