The Kelowna RCMP say that they have taken a suspected drug trafficker into custody after an officer discovered a man passed out in his vehicle this morning.
An officer with the Kelowna RCMP is "no doubt pleased he trusted his instincts," after conducting a check of a male driver who was slumped over behind the wheel of a Toyota Prius at about 12:30 a.m.
The officer found the vehicle parked in a parking lot situated in the 1700-block of Gordon Drive. Despite the officer’s multiple attempts to rouse the driver by knocking on the vehicle’s side window, the man in the driver’s seat remained unresponsive and unconscious.
“To ensure the driver was not in medical distress, our officer opened the man’s door and managed to wake him by calling out to him verbally,” says Cpl. Jesse O’Donaghey, media relations officer for the Kelowna RCMP. “Once fully conscious, the driver promptly reached over in what appeared to be an attempt to cover a large quantity of small plastic bags containing what police believed to be illicit drugs.”
In total police seized over 20 grams of suspected fentanyl, over 140 grams of suspected methamphetamine and over 9 grams of suspected cocaine. A can of bear spray, a pair of knives, a baseball bat and items consistent with trafficking controlled substances were also seized by authorities.
The 44-year-old Penticton man was taken into police custody without incident. He faces a number of potential drug related charges and was later released, expected to appear in Court on November 14, 2019.
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