Wheeling Pot Bust: California Man Caught Picking Up 1,000 Pounds Of Marijuana

Police acting on a tip were waiting at a freight yard in suburban Wheeling Wednesday when a California man arrived to pick up 1,000 pounds of marijuana.

The bust was the largest the town has seen in nearly 30 years, Wheeling Deputy Police Chief John Teevans told the Daily Herald.

“Our tactical unit feels good that we've removed these drugs from our community,” Teevans told the Daily Herald.

Authorities were granted a search warrant after drug-sniffing dogs confirmed that there was marijuana present, WGN reports. The contraband was wrapped in 45 sealed bricks and has a potential street value of $6 million to $8 million, police said in a release.

Steven Snyder of Inglewood, Ca., who claimed the packages when they arrived in the freight yard, was arrested and charged with delivery of cannabis, possession of cannabis more than 5,000 grams, and cannabis trafficking. He is being held on $250,000 bail.

Due to the large quantity of drugs intercepted, Wheeling police alerted federal authorities, who are investigating the origins of the shipment and where it was going next, Teevans told the Daily Herald.