The K-9 "Boris" helped a Cleveland Police officer make a drug bus on Interstate 75.
David Simpson appeared Monday afternoon before Federal Magistrate Susan Lee. She ordered him held pending resolution of drug charges.
Officer Any Ratcliff said Boris is a Dutch Shepherd who is capable of locating the odor of marijuana, meth, cocaine, heroin, ecstasy and dilaudid.
Last Tuesday at about 8:15 p.m., Officer Ratcliff said he was observing nortbound traffic on I-75 when he saw a black Maxima pass by and noticed that the windows were tinted extremely dark and it had a temporary tag from Ohio.
He said he stopped the vehicle and found Simpson driving. There was a female passenger.
The officer said he could smell a very strong odor of burnt and raw marijuana. He said Simpson stated that he was on his way from Atlanta to his home in Cincinnati.
Officer Ratcliff said Simpson denied there was marijuana in the car and also would not allow a search.
He said Boris was deployed to make an exterior sniff. He "indicated on the driver's side door and the trunk with a positive alert (change in behavior and sit) for the presence of a narcotic odor."
He said he then conducted a physical search of the vehicle and found burnt marijuana in the ash tray. He opened the trunk and found a backpack with a white plastic bag inside that contained what appeared to be three kilo-sized bricks of cocaine.
The officer later found a small bag of marijuana that had been shoved down the pants of the female passenger.
He found $7,700 on Simpson in his pants pocket and jacket pocket.