Women Pinched for Speed and Weed

(Joplin, Missouri) On Tuesday, two California women drove on I-44 into Missouri and were pulled over by a Highway Patrol cruiser for excessive speed. After approaching the women's car, a trooper noticed the smell of marijuana and driver Brooke Molina, of Nevada City CA, said she had a joint in the ashtray that she had smoked before leaving California. That gave the officer probable cause to search the vehicle.

Troopers then found wrapped Christmas presents containing 20 one-pound bags of processed marijuana. As a result, Molina, 28, and her passenger, Brianna N. Berban, 22, of Ojai CA, were arrested for felony possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute. They were booked into custody at the Jasper County Jail.

So, for simple speeding, Molina and Berban face serious prosecution for possessing and dealing drugs. But wait, there's more.

Missouri State Highway Patrol contacted the Nevada County Sheriff's Office with the information that marijuana is apparently being exported to the Midwest from the Nevada County area. According to spokesman Sgt. Bill Smethers of the Sheriff's Office, the marijuana trade is not surprising.

“We get contacted from everywhere — New York, Florida, Texas, Arizona,” Smethers said. “They're intercepting cars coming from Nevada County or coming back to Nevada County, carrying large quantities of processed marijuana or currency.”

Meanwhile, Nevada County authorities initiated their own investigation.

Armed with a search warrant, the local narcotics task force members went to Molina's residence and allegedly found an indoor marijuana garden with 20 plants, about 40 pounds of processed marijuana in one-pound bags packaged for sale, 18 Rubbermaid totes containing marijuana bud on the stem, and marijuana shake — bits of leaves left over from trimming the buds.

The totes contained another 30 to 40 pounds of marijuana on the stem that hadn't yet been trimmed, Smethers added.

Deputies also found evidence of both indoor and outdoor marijuana cultivation, he said.

“The inside of the garage was split into four separate rooms. They had built new walls,” Smethers said. One area had starter plants, and two other areas had more mature plants; investigators also found evidence of an old outdoor garden.

Consequently, it seems that Molina and Berban will have some 'splainin' to do when they return to California.