Police: Wrightsville traffic stop prevents contraband from entering prison

Police say officers found marijuana, tobacco, five cell phones, alcohol, saw blades and other items after stopping a vehicle for a suspended registration.

WRIGHTSVILLE, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) — A traffic stop in Wrightsville led officers to seize marijuana, tobacco, cell phones, alcohol and other items that police say were prevented from entering a prison.

According to a Wrightsville Police Department Facebook post Wednesday, officers stopped a vehicle for a suspended registration around 12:16 a.m. Tuesday in the area of Folsom Drive.

Police say officers spoke with the driver and passenger and searched the vehicle after receiving the driver’s consent.

During the search, police say officers found a large box covered in black tape in the back seat. Inside were four large packages wrapped in black tape.

A backpack in the trunk contained six footballs that police say had been cut open and sewn back together.

According to the police, the driver told investigators they were in the area to pick up a third person. Police took the driver and passenger into custody and contacted the Georgia Department of Corrections and Johnson County Sheriff’s Office.

One of the responding officers later returned to the area with Johnson County Sheriff’s Office deputies in an effort to find the third person, according to the post.

Police say the packages were later thoroughly checked with assistance from the Johnson State Prison warden and an investigator.

They say the packages contained:

• 355 grams of marijuana
• 2,618 grams of tobacco
• Five pint-sized bottles of Hennessy
• Five cell phones, including four Motorola phones and one iPhone
• One set of Dremel tools
• 10 packs of cigar wraps
• 10 charging cords
• 12 charging blocks
• Five packs of rolling papers
• Seven pairs of earbuds
• Three pairs of socks
• Nine saw blades
• Five lighters
• 19 Black & Mild cigars

Police said the items were prevented from entering the prison through the combined efforts of the police department, Johnson County Sheriff’s Office and Georgia Department of Corrections.

Police have not identified the driver or passenger, announced any charges or provided additional information about the third person officers were trying to find.