CHP make traffic stop of Highway 99 and arrest man hiding cocaine in cereal boxes

A Modesto man who allegedly trafficked cocaine by hiding it in cereal boxes was arrested this week, according to authorities.

California Highway Patrol discovered three kilograms of cocaine in cereal boxes after a making a vehicle stop around 3 p.m. Thursday on northbound Highway 99 near Le Grand Road.

Jose Cardenas, 45, was arrested after an officer performed a traffic stop on a 2012 Toyota Camry for a California Vehicle Code violation and a subsequent search revealed three cereal boxes each containing over one kilgoram of cocaine.

Authorities said that amount of cocaine could be worth an estimated $120,000.

Cardenas was booked into the Merced County Jail on suspicion of illegal transportation, sale, furnishing over three pounds of a controlled substance and possession or purchase for sale of controlled substance over three pounds, according to jail records.

This story was originally published March 29, 2019 at 2:08 PM.