Three men who were facing multiple drug charges in Saline County have had their case escalated to the federal level.

The Saline County Prosecutor Tim Thompson says that he has handed this case over to the United States Attorney’s Office in the Western District of Missouri because he believes they are in a “superior position to address these particular cases involving interstate drug trafficking of defendant’s claiming to be from Illinois”.

According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol, at approximately 9:06 a.m. Monday, April 5, 2021, a trooper stopped a vehicle for a traffic violation at the 79 mile marker on eastbound I-70.

A probable-cause search of the vehicle revealed approximately 88 pounds of methamphetamine; $5,505 in cash; and a firearm.

As a result of the search, three subjects were taken into custody and are facing felony charges.

All three of the men, 32-year-old Jose Renteria Rojas, 29-year-old, Juan Gomez Padilla, both of Evanston, Il, and 27-year-old Gustavo Renteria Rojas, of Chicago, Il have been indicted in on the charges of: conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and possession of firearms with drug trafficking, and are now in federal custody.