HollyMatkinYork, NE – An elderly couple was busted transporting 60 pounds of high-grade marijuana with a street value of $336,000 on Tuesday, police said
Patrick Jiron, 80, and his wife Barbara Jiron, 70, told officers it was intended for Christmas gifts, the York News-Times reported.
York County Sheriff’s Department (YCSD) deputies stopped the Jirons’ 2016 Toyota Tacoma on Tuesday after the vehicle crossed the center line without signaling, the York News-Times reported.
According to YCSD Lieutenant Paul Vrbka, deputies immediately smelled a strong odor of raw marijuana, and requested that K9 Officer Dundee respond to assist.
When Dundee alerted that a controlled substance was present, deputies searched the Jirons’ vehicle.
The couple admitted that the drug was located under a topper in the back of their pickup.
Deputies seized 60 pounds of high-grade marijuana that was packed into boxes, as well as several containers of concentrated THC, WLS-TV reported.
The Jirons told deputies that they were traveling from California to Boston and Vermont, and that the marijuana was supposed to have been given away to friends and family as Christmas gifts, National Public Radio reported.
They claimed that “they didn’t know it was illegal to transport marijuana in Nebraska,” Lt. Vrbka said.
Nebraska requires marijuana providers to purchase drug tax stamps from the state’s Department of Revenue to prove that the tax has been paid, National Public Radio reported.
Yes, they tax illegal substances.
The Jirons were charged with possession of marijuana with intent to deliver and having no drug tax stamp, the lieutenant explained.
The charges they face are felonies.
Patrick was booked into the York County Jail. He was released after he posted 10 percent of his $100,000 bond, the York News-Times reported.
Barbara was not arrested “due to some medical issues.”