An early Saturday traffic stop has lead to the arrest of a Church Point man on drug charges. Authorities in Calcasieu Parish pulled over the driver of a tow truck on I-10 about 4:30 on September 22 for a routine traffic stop.

The officer on the scene noticed the operator of the vehicle, Elton J. Richard of Church  Point, was acting suspiciously. So, the officer requested permission to search Richard's truck. When that permission was refused the officers on the scene requested a K9 officer.

The K9 officer alerted on the scent of a controlled substance and that gave officers the probable cause they needed to continue the search. The results of the search yielded 27 bundles of powder cocaine. The weight of the contraband was approximately 63 pounds and officials estimated the street value of the drugs was about $870,000.

Richard was booked into the Calcasieu Correctional Center and charged with possession of CDS II (cocaine) over 28 grams. Richard's bail has been set at $250,000 by Judge Clayton Davis.

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