An automated licence plate reader alerted a police patrol to an unattached plate – and the discovery of a large cache of illegal drugs.
The incident took place April 5 around 1:30 p.m. when the reader used by Ontario Provincial Police in Little Current sounded an alert.
“Police conducted a traffic stop on the vehicle on Highway 551, and further investigation resulted in both the driver and passenger being arrested,” police said in a news release Monday.
“Additionally, police seized amounts of suspected cocaine, crack cocaine and hydromorphone pills with an estimated street value of $21,000.”
All OPP cruisers have them
Two people, ages 34 and 35, from M’Chigeeng First Nation were charged with drug trafficking. They have since been released with court dates of May 13 in the Ontario Court of Justice in Gore Bay.
People remind residents that all OPP patrol vehicles have automated licence plate readers in use, which are a big help in dealing with traffic and criminal offences.
“It does so by detecting licence plates that are linked to occurrences such as wanted or missing persons, stolen vehicles, stolen and unattached plates, suspended/prohibited drivers, vehicles associated with Amber Alerts and other serious occurrences,” police said.
