CHEEKTOWAGA, N.Y. — Federal investigators on Friday announced that they found hundreds of pounds of cocaine at a Western New York truck stop.
Some 386 kilograms of cocaine was seized from a tractor trailer parked in Cheektowaga. That's a street value, depending on the conversion, of more than $10 million.
The investigation began Monday in Canada, where investigators began surveilling a tractor trailer that came across the border into Detroit. It was observed parking extremely close to another truck several times in Michigan, in what investigators believe was an attempt to block the view of some sort of exchange.
That truck would later drive to Western New York and park at Jim's Truck Plaza on Wednesday night.
Investigators were able to get a search warrant for the truck, and when they were able to do a search, they uncovered boxes and duffle bags full of cocaine.
The driver of the truck, Ahmed El Kady, now faces numerous federal drug trafficking charges.
"This is clearly a significant amount of drugs that were meant to be distributed into the Western New York community," Trini Ross, the U.S. Attorney for the Western District of New York, said during a Friday news conference.
"Because of the diligent and excellent work of law enforcement and this office, this poison was intercepted and will not be dispersed into our community. This is important to our community as we see the deaths from opioid poisoning rise."
El Kady appeared Friday afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jeremiah J. McCarthy. He is being held pending a detention hearing at 11 a.m. Monday.