Navajo County Sheriff’s Deputies Seize Around 72-Thousand Suspected Fentanyl Pills During A Traffic Stop Near Holbrook Monday

Navajo County Sheriff’s deputies seized around 72-thousand suspected fentanyl pills during a traffic stop Monday east of Holbrook on Interstate-40. Officials say during the traffic stop, both the driver and passenger were asked to step out of the vehicle. When they did, 29-year-old Rafael Quihui Andrade, who was the passenger, ran to the driver’s side and drove away, leaving 37-year-old Iracema Ramirez along the side of the highway. A deputy went after him as he went eastbound on I-40. When deputies caught up to the car, three miles away from the stop, they found it abandoned. A search of the surrounding area resulted in finding Rafael behind some rocks. Back at the scene of the traffic stop, deputies brought out K9 “Kilo” to do a free air sniff of the car, where the dog alerted to the presence of drugs. Deputies found a duffle bag that contained the pills, that have a street value of around one-and-a-half million dollars. The two suspects, both from Phoenix, were booked into the Navajo County Jail on a one-and-a-half million dollar cash only bond on drug charges and unlawful flight from law enforcement.