10/19/2009

WICHITA — A Tucson, Ariz., man was sentenced Monday to nine years in federal prison for drug trafficking in a case that started with a traffic stop near Collyer, in Rooks County in western Kansas.
U.S. Attorney Lanny Welch announced the sentence for Jose Romeo Cazares, 53, in a press statement.
At the Cazares’ sentencing, prosecutors presented evidence that he first came to the attention of law enforcement in December 2008 when he was stopped on Interstate Highway 80 in Omaha. During that traffic stop, officers found a false compartment containing 29 bundles of cash totaling more than $760,700.
On Jan. 27, Cazares was stopped by a Kansas Highway Patrol trooper on Interstate Highway 70 near Collyer. During a search of Cezares’ vehicle, the trooper found a false compartment containing more than 55 pounds of cocaine.
Cazares pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine in August.