CHP dog sniffs out cocaine during traffic stop in Merced County

An Arizona man is behind bars in Merced County Jail after a California Highway Patrol dog sniffed out drugs in his car Monday night during a traffic stop, officers said.

A CHP officer stopped a speeding vehicle on northbound Interstate 5 just north of Highway 152 about 10:45 p.m. The officer asked if his police dog, Laika, could search the vehicle, and the driver agreed, said Officer Eric Zuniga, a spokesman with CHP.

Laika alerted the officer to narcotics in the car. A search of the car produced an AR-15 rifle, a Glock-19 handgun, one pound of cocaine and more than $100,000 in cash, Zuniga said.

Thomas Vaughan Doyle, 31, of Phoenix, Ariz. was arrested and jailed on multiple gun and drug charges. He remained in Merced County Jail on Tuesday on $200,500 bail.

This story was originally published June 6, 2017 at 3:00 PM with the headline "CHP dog sniffs out cocaine during traffic stop in Merced County."