Traffic stop leads to 1,333 pounds of pot

The Maricopa Police Department implemented a multi-agency anti-drug smuggling operation this week resulting in the arrest of three Mexican Nationals and the confiscation of more than 1,300 pounds of marijuana.

Called Eagle Talon, the operation included the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office, federal, state, tribal and local law enforcement.

The focus of the operation was to coordinate crime-fighting efforts at people, vehicles and criminal activity involved in transporting illegal drugs.

Officer Ricardo Alvarado, the department's public information officer, said the operation was set up to test if Maricopa is a corridor for drug running, and was the first of its kind in the city.

During three separate traffic stops, occupants left the vehicles on foot and ran into the desert. Using PSCO's air support and other units involved in this operation, all subjects were found and arrested.