PROGRAM PROMPTING INTERSTATE DRUG BUSTS

About 200 pounds of marijuana were seized by Tangipahoa Parish deputies
Tuesday afternoon during a traffic stop on Interstate 12, sheriff's
officials said.

Deputies stopped a eastbound vehicle that was swerving from lane to lane in
an erratic manner, TPSO public information officer Patti Giannoble said.

A police K-9 indicated that drugs were in the vehicle during the traffic
stop, she said. Further investigation led to the seizure of the marijuana.

Manuel Mauro Sandoval, 22, 16711 Blueridge Drive, Missouri, Texas, and
Jenny Diaz, 17, 7408 Dadelway St., Orlando, Fla., were both arrested and
charged with possession of marijuana with intent to distribute.

The arrest was part of a new, Criminal Interdiction Program, which kicked
off in November, Giannoble said.

"The Criminal Interdiction Program is a way for us to monitor and crack
down on the amount of drugs being transported to or through our parish,"
she said.

Tuesday's arrest marked the second sizable marijuana seizure this month,
she said.

On Feb. 2, two Houston men were arrested and charged with possession with
intent to distribute after deputies stopped their vehicle for following too
closely.

Again, drug dogs alerted deputies who found 25 pounds of marijuana,
Giannoble said.

Keith Wright, 32, 5385 Desoto, and Mark Anthony Simmons, 37, 5310 Randon
St., were arrested and charged with possession of marijuana with intent to
distribute.

Since the Criminal Interdiction Program began, deputies have seized more
than 600 pounds of marijuana, 1 kilogram of cocaine, 25 vials of steroids,
$12,000 in methamphetamine and $32,000 Giannoble said.

The program has also resulted in 20 felony arrests, which included the
arrest of an out-of-state fugitive that was wanted for child molestation,
she said.