St. GEORGE, Utah, Dec. 21, 2018 (Gephardt Daily) — Two men were booked into the Washington County Jail after a Utah Highway Patrol officer made a traffic stop and found more than $50,000 in stolen goods and contraband in the vehicle.
Late Tuesday night, Mario Vargas, 26, and Fernando Veg-Gort, 21, both from Las Vegas, were booked into the Washington County Jail on identical charges, suspicion of:
- Ten counts of receiving stolen goods, a second-degree felony
- One count possession of controlled substances, marijuana, a class B misdemeanor
- One count of use or possession of drug paraphernalia, a class B misdemeanor
The probable cause statement was filed by a UHP officer, who said he observed the speeding SUV on Interstate 15 near mile marker 7 at about 10:04 p.m. Tuesday.
“Radar showed the vehicle was traveling 86 mph in a marked 70 mph zone,” the statement says. “I pulled out, caught up to the vehicle and pulled it over between mile marker six and five on I-15.”
“The vehicle was occupied by two adult males. There was a strong odor of raw and burnt marijuana coming from the inside of the vehicle,” the statement says.
Driver Veg-Gort said the gray GMC Yukon SUV was a rental, adding that he had no paperwork. The officer returned to his vehicle and called for backup.
“I reapproached the vehicle and asked the occupants if either of them had a medical marijuana card. Both said no. I asked if there was any marijuana inside the car. The driver reached into the backseat and handed me a bag marked Green Dragon Cannabis Company. Inside the bag were several smaller bags of marijuana.”
The officers asked the driver and passenger to leave the vehicle, and passenger Varga tried to conceal a pair of wire cutting pliers, the UHP officer’s statement said.
“I began a probable cause search of the car. Inside the rear cargo area, I found large black trash bags containing clothing, purses, cologne, shoes and other high value items. The items still had the security tags and price tags attached. There were several hundred of these items with the price tags and security tags still attached.
“I also located a shopping bag that was lined with aluminum foil. Based on my training and experience, I know this is a common way to defeat security tags in retail stores. I located two packages of aluminum foil and more than 10 unused shopping bags from popular retailers.
“I believe probable cause existed that the items with the price tags and security tags were stolen. I also found another bag labeled Green Dragon Cannabis Company in the cargo area of the vehicle.”
“The items appear to have a total value in excess of $50,000.”
