CEDAR CITY — The driver of a cargo van was arrested near Cedar City on Monday after Utah Highway Patrol troopers reportedly found more than 300 pounds of marijuana inside the vehicle.
Quintin Anthony Ranford, 32, was booked into Iron County Jail on Monday evening on suspicion of being in possession of more than 100 pounds of marijuana, a second-degree felony, in addition to counts of possessing drug paraphernalia and driving with an obstructed view.
According to a probable cause statement filed in support of Ranford’s arrest, a Utah Highway Patrol trooper observed a white Ford Transit van with Ohio license plates pass by him on northbound Interstate 15 around 5 p.m. Monday near mile marker 47, about 5 miles south of Cedar City.
The trooper wrote in the affidavit that he noticed the van was following a semitractor-trailer with less than two seconds’ following distance, so he pulled out of the median and began to follow the vehicle.
By the time the trooper caught up to the van, it was no longer following the semi too closely, he noted, adding that he then spotted another infraction.
“I observed that it had a cell phone mount, with a cell phone, on the windshield that was immediately in front of the driver’s view, clearly obstructing his view,” the trooper wrote.
During the ensuing traffic stop, the trooper reportedly asked the driver, identified as Ranford, what he was transporting in the van.
“He provided me paperwork for hemp that appeared to be fake,” the trooper wrote, adding that he then asked for and received the driver’s consent to search the vehicle.
“I opened one of the barrels in the back and found that it possessed packages that appeared to be marijuana,” the trooper wrote.
After the vehicle and its driver were transported to Cedar City, a search of the van’s contents reportedly yielded a total of 307 pounds of marijuana, which is roughly equal to 140,000 grams.
As of Tuesday afternoon, Ranford had not yet made his initial appearance in 5th District Court.
This report is based on statements from court documents and law enforcement officials and may not contain the full scope of findings. Persons arrested or charged are presumed innocent until found guilty in a court of law or as otherwise decided by a trier-of-fact.
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