Coalinga man arrested in Nipomo for possession of over two pounds of fentanyl
SAN LUIS OBISPO COUNTY, Calif. – A Coalinga man who was suspected of driving over two pounds – or about $25,000 worth – of fentanyl into San Luis Obispo County was arrested in Nipomo last month, according to the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff's Office.
Sheriff's deputies spotted the car with two occupants – the 31-year-old Coalinga resident and a 20-year-old Nipomo woman – on April 22, and pulled the car over on northbound Highway 101 just north of Highway 166, according to sheriff's spokesman Tony Cipolla.
The car was stopped on the should of the highway just south of the Tefft Street off-ramp in Nipomo, but suddenly took off and exited the freeway as a deputy questioned the occupants, Cipolla said.
Deputies were able to stop the car again at East Tefft Street and Beechnut Street and detained the woman, but the man fled the scene once again.
Deputies began searching for the man and spotted him in the front yard of a home before running into a nearby field near East Branch Street where he was caught and arrested, Cipolla said.
Deputies located a backpack containing a kilo – or approximately 2.2 pounds, $25,000 worth, or 500,000 lethal doses – of fentanyl nearby where the man had been arrested, according to Cipolla.
The man was arrested for possession of a controlled substance for sale, transporting a controlled substance for sale, and resisting a peace officer.
The woman was arrested for attempting to evade a peace officer in a reckless manner.