In the biggest drug bust in Stoddard County’s history, a Dexter man was arrested early Thursday morning as he returned home from California with 74 pounds of marijuana in a rented SUV, according to Sheriff Carl Hefner.
Jack E. Schmerber Jr., 31, was detained without incident by Stoddard County investigators, who were tipped off about the drugs by a confidential informant, according to Hefner.
Jack Schmerber is being held in Stoddard County jail without bond.
The street value of the marijuana is estimated at $160,000, Hefner said. Arresting officers also recovered $7,900 in cash in the vehicle. It had Nevada plates and was stopped a minute after midnight on Highway 60, just east of Dexter near Grayridge, Hefner said.
“There were seven bails ... and each bail contained one-pound packages of marijuana,’’ Hefner said. “We didn’t count them, but the bails weighed 74 pounds.”
“He was headed back from California to Stoddard County in a rented SUV with a Nevada license plate on it,’’ the sheriff said. “I assume he was going to distribute it in the area.”
Hefner said investigators received a tip from a source whom they began working with in early March.
“People will call you with tips all the time but that doesn’t make them reliable. But this person was considered as being a reliable informant,” he said.
Hefner said the drug bust is the largest ever made in Stoddard County.
“I’ve been around here almost 30 years and it’s the biggest (drug bust) I’m aware of,’’ he said.
Schmerber’s wife Brittany was also detained.