Police seize quarter-ton of pot from minivan

HOGANSBURG — A suspicious minivan parked behind an abandoned house near the U.S.-Canada border Monday led St. Regis Mohawk Tribal Police to seize 511 pounds of marijuana and a loaded shotgun and arrest a Norfolk man.

Andrew M. Comins, 22, of 274 Lacomb Road, was charged Monday with possessing more than 100 kilograms of marijuana, federal court records show. Franklin County District Attorney Derek P. Champagne said Wednesday that he expects more federal charges will be filed.

A criminal complaint filed by a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent said St. Regis Mohawk Tribal Police responded about 7 a.m. Monday to a suspicious vehicle on Brown Road less than a mile from the U.S.-Canada border.

Tribal police found a minivan with its headlights on parked behind an abandoned house. The driver, later identified as Mr. Comins, was found to be wanted on two arrest warrants.

Mr. Champagne said one is from a pending felony driving while intoxicated charge in Franklin County Court, Malone.

Searching the minivan, tribal police reportedly found a loaded shotgun on the front passenger seat. An officer then noticed a hockey bag and garbage bags in the back, court records show.

"The back of the van was nearly full with marijuana," the ICE agent wrote.

Mr. Champagne, who declined to elaborate, said the value of the marijuana in Franklin County could reach $2,800 a pound, with a pound of pot selling for about $4,000 in Albany and nearly $7,000 in New York City, making the street value of the haul as much as $3.5 million.

Mr. Comins was arraigned Tuesday in U.S. District Court, Plattsburgh, before Judge Larry A. Kudrle and put in federal custody. Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth A. Horsman asked the judge to remand him without bail because he was considered a flight risk and a danger, court records show.

A detention hearing is scheduled for Sept. 13.