Crime & Safety
Police: Homemade 'Soap' was 2 Kilos of Cocaine
Drugs allegedly found during traffic stop on I-78 in South Whitehall; two New York City residents charged, jailed on large amount of bail.
The woman whose rental car—a white 2013 Mercedes—was stopped on Interstate 78 in South Whitehall said the two brick-size packages in the trunk were soap she herself had made.
But state police saw it differently. They say the packages actually were more than 2 kilos of cocaine, according to court records. And their discovery has landed the woman and her passenger—both from New York City—in Lehigh County Prison on large amounts of bail.
The records identify the woman as Annadel Cruz, 26, and her passenger as Alexander Bernstein, 30. They were stopped for "moving violations" around 11:30 Wednesday night on westbound I-78 at the Hamilton Boulevard exit.
According to the records:
—The trooper who stopped the car smelled marijuana smoke coming from the driver's side. Cruz, the driver, told police the Mercedes was a rental and she and Bernstein were driving from New York to Florida.
—She told the trooper she had smoked marijuana earlier in the day, but not in the car. She gave police permission to search the car.
—A check of Bernstein's criminal record showed charges of drug possession and delivery violations. He told police he had a bag in the trunk and gave police permission to search it.
—The trooper found the two packages covered in clear plastic wrap and red tape.
—Cruz told police the packages contained soap she had made. But the substance tested positive for cocaine. The packages weighed a combined 2.372 kilograms.
—Police also found a small amount of marijuana in Cruz's bra.
Cruz and Bernstein were arraigned Thursday morning by District Judge Jacob Hammond of South Whitehall. Each was charged with two felonies—criminal conspiracy and manufacture, delivery and possession of drugs.
Cruz also was charged with possession of drugs and possession of a small amount of marijuana, as well as the traffic violations of disregard traffic lane and exceeding 55 mph by 5 mph. Bernstein also was charged with possession of drugs and possession of drug paraphernalia.
Both were committed to Lehigh County Prison, Cruz in lieu of $250,000 bail and Bernstein in lieu of $500,000 bail.