MONTOUR COUNTY -- State police have made another big drug bust on Interstate 80 in Montour County.
"It seems fairly par for the course at this point. This is I think the sixth or seventh fairly significant drug bust we've seen here in Montour on Interstate 80 by state police in the last four or five months. At this point, it’s becoming fairly routine,” said Montour County District Attorney Angela Mattis.
State police have a unit called SHIELD. Troopers are specially trained to spot criminal activity during traffic stops.
Reports show they've been busy along Interstate 80 in recent months, especially between the Danville and Limestoneville exits.
State police cannot say for sure why that is.
"We've seen 225 pounds of marijuana seized just in the last 12 months alone, so for the tiniest county in the state, that's fairly significant. We've seen over 150 tablets of oxycodone. We're at over 125 grams of cocaine in addition to a variety of other drugs,” said Mattis.
News of the big busts on the interstate are not surprising to some.
"Not with the way the drugs are around anymore, you know?" said Matt Shipe of Danville.
Geographically, Montour County is the smallest county in Pennsylvania. It's the sixth smallest according to population.
The district attorney and others say making these big drug busts on the interstate is something to be proud of.
"It's a little scary to think that much is going through this area, but it's also good to hear the authorities are doing the right thing to get it off the streets,” said Brad Bason of Danville.
"For criminals trafficking illegal substances, Montour County is becoming an increasingly risky place to do so and frankly that's just how we like it,” said Mattis.
The district attorney says there is no telling exactly where those drugs are heading; some may be staying in the area.
Most of those arrested in connection with the interstate drug busts are not from central or northeastern Pennsylvania.