An illegally tinted window that led to a police traffic stop in the Chantilly area resulted in the discovery and seizure of 26.4 pounds of marijuana — with a street value of $105,600.
It also led to the arrest of the two men inside the vehicle. Trooper Wesley Paul of the Virginia State Police explained what happened in June 20 affidavits to search the men's three cell phones.
ON JUNE 12, at 1:32 a.m., on I-66 west at the Fairfax County Parkway, he stopped a 2007 Chevrolet Avalanche truck for allegedly having a dark window tint. The occupants then agreed to a consent search of their vehicle.
Then, said State Police spokesman Terry Licklider, the trooper "smelled marijuana, searched the vehicle and [reportedly] found 26.4 pounds of marijuana in two boxes in the bed of the pickup truck."
Paul charged both men — Christopher Monroe Peters, 27, of Lynchburg, and Corwayne Sheldon Skeete, 33, of Charlottesville — with possession with intent to distribute marijuana.
During the search, Paul also found three cell phones. And, he wrote, "It is common for persons engaged in the illegal sale of narcotics to use cell phones to facilitate their illegal drug transactions. It is also common for drug sellers to communicate with other persons associated with their illegal business via cell phones."
So he sought permission to seize these phones and examine each one's memory for "phone numbers of [alleged] drug associates and text messages and photos regarding their [reported] illegal activity."
Both Peters and Skeete have Aug. 22 court dates.
<tgl> — Bonnie Hobbs