Man arrested in Camp Verde with 367 grams of cocaine

Interdiction operation was conducted in Camp Verde

CAMP VERDE - A Friday-afternoon traffic stop and arrest led Cottonwood police officers to the discovery of 367 grams of cocaine in a man’s vehicle.

Friday, at about 3:20 p.m., Cottonwood officers were conducting interdiction operations in the area of I-17 and State Route 260. They conducted a traffic stop on a 2015 Kia Optima for excessive speed.

The driver and lone occupant, 38-year old Flagstaff resident Christopher M. Perez, was arrested for an excessive speed violation.

The Cottonwood Police Department’s K-9, Kratos, was deployed following the arrest to conduct a narcotics sniff. A subsequent search of the vehicle revealed 367 grams of powder cocaine, or about four-fifths of one pound.

Investigators estimate a street value on the Cocaine of $30,000.

There was also allegedly 1.62 ounces of marijuana and $600 in cash in the vehicle.

Perez was booked into the Yavapai County Detention Center for possession of narcotic drugs for sale (cocaine), transportation of narcotic drugs, possession of narcotic drugs, drug paraphernalia, money laundering, possession of marijuana and excessive speed.

He remains in jail on a cash-only bond of $150,000.

The investigation remains ongoing.