July 17, 2025
WEST MEMPHIS, Ark. — Arkansas State Police Troopers conducted a series of successful traffic stops along Interstate 40 between July 9 and July 13, 2025, resulting in the seizure of over 163 pounds of illegal marijuana and the arrest of multiple individuals on felony charges.
Troopers intercepted four separate vehicles during traffic stops in Pope, Faulkner, and Crawford counties.
On Sunday, July 13, 2025, at approximately 2 a.m., Troopers stopped a 2008 Chevy Impala for a traffic violation on I-40 eastbound at the 82-mile marker near Russellville. Troopers discovered 10 pounds of individually wrapped illegal marijuana bundles in the trunk. The driver, Demarcus Towns, 40, of Charleston, Mississippi, was taken into custody and transported to the Pope County Detention Center. He was booked on felony charges of Possession with Intent to Deliver, Possession of Drug Paraphernalia, and other traffic violations. Towns said he was traveling from Oklahoma.
On Saturday, July 12, at around 9 a.m., Troopers stopped a Nissan Armada eastbound on I-40 near the 128-mile marker in Conway for a traffic violation. A search of the vehicle revealed 51 one-pound bags of illegal marijuana.. The driver, Carl Newman, 52, of Buford, Georgia, was arrested and taken to the Faulkner County Detention Center, where he was booked on felony charges of Possession with Intent to Deliver. Newman said he was traveling from Tulsa, Okla., to Georgia.
Also on July 12, Troopers stopped a Volkswagen Jetta on I-40 near the 93-mile marker in Atkins for a traffic violation. During the search, Troopers seized 15 pounds of illegal marijuana, wrapped in one-pound bundles, from the trunk of the vehicle. The driver, James Jones, 32, and the passenger, Christen Springer, 37, both from West Memphis, were arrested and transported to the Pope County Detention Center. Both individuals were charged with felony Possession with Intent to Deliver and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. Jones told investigators he was traveling from Oklahoma.
Additionally, on July 9, at around 10 a.m., Troopers stopped a 2021 Toyota Sienna for a traffic violation near the Arkansas/Oklahoma state line on I-40 in Crawford County. After searching the vehicle, Troopers located several large trash bags containing individual bundles of illegal marijuana weighing about 87 pounds. The driver, Ziling Zhou, 31, of Seattle, Wash., was arrested and taken to the Crawford County Detention Center, where he was booked on felony charges of Possession with Intent to Deliver, Possession of Drug paraphernalia, and Unauthorized Use of Another Person’s Property to Facilitate a Crime.
