For Immediate Release: March 23, 2012
Contact: Lt. William Stidham (419) 422-6477

Troopers seize 6 kilos of cocaine from hidden compartment during a traffic stop on the Ohio Turnpike

PERRYSBURG – Two suspects from Illinois are facing felony drug charges after Ohio State Highway Patrol troopers seized 6 kilos of cocaine, worth more than $500,000, following a traffic stop on the Ohio Turnpike in Wood County.

Troopers stopped a 2008 Infiniti EX35, with Illinois registration, for a speed violation on the Ohio Turnpike near milepost 70, at 12:04 p.m. on March 22. Criminal indicators were observed and a Patrol drug-sniffing canine alerted to the vehicle. A probable cause search revealed the 6 kilos of cocaine in a hidden compartment built into the rocker panels of the vehicle.

The driver, Jose Manuel Gonzalez Villalobos, 43, and passenger, Jose Alberto Tizoc-Morales, 33, both of Cicero, Ill., were charged with drug abuse and trafficking in drugs, both first-degree felonies. Villalobos was also charged with possession of criminal tools, a fifth-degree felony.

Both suspects were incarcerated in the Wood County Jail. If convicted, Villalobos could face up to 21 years in prison and up to a $42,500 fine and Tizoc-Morales could face up to 20 years in prison and up to a $40,000 fine.

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