'Goodness Gracious!' Seminole Police Dept. discover 222 marijuana plants during traffic stop
SEMINOLE, Okla. (KFOR) - The Seminole Police Dept. said a traffic stop turned into a drug bust. Officers said they knew something was fishy when the driver started explaining himself.
On January 11th, 2023, Seminole Police said they spotted a yellow box truck driving near Highway 99 and EW 1255. Inside the truck was the suspect, Bun Wong, 46.
"You're running about 25-30mph under the speed limit and then you crossed this white line twice," said K9 Officer Billy Messner.
The officer writes in his report that he could smell weed coming from the truck. Wong told the officers there was marijuana in the back.
Wong supplied the officer with a transportation manifest. However, the Officer Messner said he needed something else.
Police: "You got a transportation license, too?"
Wong: "I don't have it with me."
Police: "Man, that's illegal."
Wong then get's out of the truck and opens up the back.
"Goodness gracious! How many are supposed to be there?" asked Officer Messner.
"The entire back of the Penske truck was full of marijuana plants and pots," said Lt. Christopher Ayers. "We found 222 marijuana plants which didn't match the manifest at all."
Officer Messner writes in his notes that the manifest called for 150 plants.
Another red flag popped up when Wong told Officer Messner about his alleged destination. Wong said he was coming from Okemah and on his way to Nowata.
Police: "Well, you didn't come from Okemah."
Wong: "Yes, I stopped by something, somewhere else."
Police: "Well, you stopped way out of the way of Okemah. Okemah's like way, way over there."
"Things didn't add up. And so, he contacted one of our detectives and they contacted the OBN unit that regulates the marijuana," said Lt. Ayers.
When the detective arrived, they found a big clue on the shipping manifest.
Detective: "What's today's date?"
Officer: "The 11th"
"It said the manifest was created on 1-12," Officer Messner explained to another officer.
"It was dated in the future, which stood out to the officer immediately," said Lt. Ayers.
Police said Wong was arrested on cultivating complaints.
On Facebook, Police Chief Jon Withers said, “The department is proud of Officer Messner for his hard work and continued long hours of training to help rid the community of illegal narcotics in the area. We also wish to express our gratitude to the City Council for continuing to support us.”
The city manager, Steve Saxon, said, “Fighting the battle of illegal drugs becomes easier when you have the right tools. K9 Raven and Officer Messner have certainly improved our enforcement within Seminole. I think the message is being sent loud and clear that Seminole isn't a good location for this activity.”