90 pounds of pot found in rental truck

ELKHART COUNTY, Ind. (WISH) - A routine traffic stop in Elkhart County led to a trooper finding approximately 90 pounds of marijuana in the back of a rental truck.

An Indiana State Police trooper stopped a U-Haul rental truck for a traffic infraction near the Elkhart East exit Thursday morning.

The driver, Kelly Sullivan, 39, was traveling to New York when he was stopped. Police became suspicious of his story and called for a K-9 unit.

A small amount of marijuana and drug paraphernalia was uncovered in the passenger compartment of the truck.

The trooper then noticed the trunk was secured with a padlock. Sullivan said he did not have a key to open the trunk.

He was arrested and preliminarily charged with a misdemeanor possession of marijuana and possession of paraphernalia and taken to the Elkhart County Jail.

While in the process of obtaining a search warrant to search the locked portion of the U-Haul, the trooper received a call from a man claiming to be the renter of the truck.

Brian Kraynik said he was following closely behind Sullivan while in route to New York. He also said that, without Sullivan’s knowledge, he put several pounds of marijuana in the back of the truck.

Kraynik turned himself into authorities. He was arrested and preliminarily charged with dealing marijuana, a Class C felony, and possession of marijuana, a Class D felony. He was taken to the Elkhart County Jail.

After gaining access to the back of the truck, police found 13 boxes containing 90 pounds of marijuana. The marijuana had a street value of approximately $4,000 to $5,000 per pound, police say.