A deputy stopping a Toyota Tacoma around 10 p.m. Dec. 30 at Mountain View and McEver Roads saw several gas cans in the backseat and truckbed, according to testimony Friday, Feb. 10.

But the deputy didn’t smell gas, leading law enforcement to discover more than 300 kilograms of liquid methamphetamine valued at $22 million.

Candido Rangel Garcia, 45, and Adolfo Solorio Garcia, 31, were arrested and charged with meth trafficking. Both men appeared in court Friday for a Magistrate Court committal hearing on the charges.

Investigator Blake Farr said the deputy stopped the truck because of its tag light.

After seeing the cans, the deputy “also noticed that one of the gas cans appeared to have a leak, and the substance around the lid was crystallizing,” Farr said.

The investigator was notified and arrived at the scene. Field tests came back positive for meth and possibly fentanyl, though authorities are waiting for further confirmation.

Farr said Candido Garcia was the driver and Adolfo Garcia was the passenger.

The Drug Enforcement Administration was contacted and took custody of the cans. 

Magistrate Court Judge Elizabeth Reisman bound the meth trafficking charges for both men on to Superior Court.