3 arrested after vehicle search yields more than 25 pounds of meth, heroin

Three men were arrested Thursday in Chehalis after members of the Joint Narcotics Enforcement Team found more than 25 pounds of methamphetamine and heroin during a vehicle search.

According a Centralia Police Department news release, the narcotics team was conducting surveillance on suspected drug traffickers in the 1700 block of Northwest Louisiana Avenue as part of an investigation that spanned from California to Vancouver to Chehalis.

Detectives made contact with the suspects — three men in two separate vehicles, once of which had a California license plate — and called a K-9 team to conduct a search of the vehicles.

The dog directed detectives to the vehicle with the California plate, and more than 23 pounds of meth and 2 pounds of heroin were discovered.

The three men — a 29-year-old from Vancouver, 22-year-old from Rialto, California, and a 52-year-old from Stone Park, Illinois — were booked into the Lewis County Jail.

The narcotics team includes detectives from the Centralia and Chehalis police departments, Lewis County Sheriff’s Office and the Washington State Department of Corrections.

Lauren Smith: 360-754-5473, @smithlm12

This story was originally published May 4, 2018 at 1:40 PM with the headline "3 arrested after vehicle search yields more than 25 pounds of meth, heroin."