Police seize 10 pounds of meth, five pounds of fentanyl on highway near Bend

Published 1:46 pm Friday, January 20, 2023

State police arrested a man and seized about 10 pounds of suspected methamphetamine and 5 pounds of suspected powdered fentanyl during a traffic stop Thursday on U.S. Highway 97 north of Bend, according to an Oregon State Police news release.

Dania Marbella Banegas-Ramos, 28, of Oakland, California, faces various drug charges and was booked in the Deschutes County jail.

Oregon State Police stopped an SUV heading north on the highway north of Cooley Road for a suspected traffic violation.

A trooper saw what he described as criminal activity and said Banegas-Ramos consented to a search of the car. A police dog sniffed out the drugs, which police said were hidden in the car.

Police said a variety of drug task forces assisted with the investigation.