Tinted windows and a traffic stop lead to cocaine bust in the Florida Keys, deputies say
A Cutler Bay man faces a drug trafficking charge after Florida Keys deputies who pulled him over Tuesday morning say they found more than 10 ounces of cocaine in his car.
Yoandi Emilio Cardenas Mendice, 38, also faces misdemeanor drug paraphernalia stemming from the traffic stop, according to the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office.
A deputy pulled him over around 11 a.m. on U.S. 1 near mile marker 99 in Key Largo because the tint on the windows of his Range Rover was too dark, the sheriff’s office said.
Deputies searched his car using a drug-sniffing dog, which “alerted to drugs in the vehicle,” sheriff’s office spokesman Adam Linhardt said. They found a bag containing 10.2 ounces of cocaine in the back seat, Linhardt said.
Deputies also found a fake tire repair kit with a false bottom in the trunk, which Linhardt said is commonly used to hide illegal drugs.
Deputies arrested Cardenas Mendice, and he was in county jail Tuesday night with no bond information immediately available. A woman riding with him was not arrested.
