LITTLE ROCK (10-23) 

     Officers from the Arkansas Highway Police (AHP) Division of the Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department (AHTD) uncovered a significant shipment of illegal drugs in a commercial motor vehicle along Interstate 30 this week, according to AHP Chief Ron Burks.

     While conducting a vehicle safety inspection on Tuesday, October 21, 2008, at the Hope Highway Police Station in Hempstead County , officers discovered 49 bundles of marijuana. The drugs were found in the sleeper compartment of the truck.  Approximate total weight of the bundles was 110 pounds with an estimated value of $110,000.

     The driver was identified as Oscar Recio of Pharr , TX .  The co-driver was identified as Heliodoro Garcia of Austin , TX .  It is believed the truck was traveling from McAllen , Texas to Chicago , Illinois with a cargo of tomatoes.  Recio and Garcia were arrested for possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver and were being held at the Hempstead County Jail while awaiting arraignment in the Hempstead County Circuit Court.