Members of the Multi-Agency Gang Unit and the West Tennessee Drug Task Force arrested two men Sunday evening (10.28.18) on Interstate 40 carrying 280 pounds of marijuana in their tractor trailer loaded with washing machines, Shelby County Dist. Atty. Gen. Amy Weirich said Monday.
Defendants Corey Dajuan Walden, 31, of Antioch, TN and Jonathan Tarell Carter, 43, of Cane Ridge, TN, are charged with possession of a controlled substance with intent to manufacture, deliver or sell. Mr. Carter also is charged with failure to exercise due care.
Both are in custody in the Shelby County Jail.
Authorities said the tractor trailer was pulled over for a traffic violation shortly after 8 p.m. Sunday in eastbound I-40 near Canada Road. After K-9 officer Nic alerted to the presence of narcotics in the truck, officers found five large duffel bags filled marijuana inside the trailer which was loaded with washing machines.
Gen. Weirich and Shelby County Sheriff Floyd Bonner Jr. said the seizure is good example of the coordinated efforts of multiple law enforcement agencies, including the Tennessee Highway Patrol.
Drug Task Force Director Tim Helldorfer said the street value of the marijuana is approximately $840,000.
The Multi-Agency Gang Unit (MGU) includes highly-trained members of the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office, Memphis Police Department Organized Crime Unit, as well as the ATF, FBI and the U.S. Marshals.
The West Tennessee Drug Task Force is made up of more than 40 law enforcement officers assigned from various agencies in three West Tennessee Judicial Districts, and is administered by the Shelby County District Attorney’s Office.
