Driver Popped for 15 Pounds of Pot in Car

A Marin County deputy sheriff made an aromatic discovery during a traffic stop early Tuesday morning, leading to drug charges for the driver.

The deputy was driving southbound on Highway 101 near the Alameda del Prado exit in Novato when the registration sticker of a nearby car showed up as expired, Lt. Jamie Scardina said. During a subsequent traffic top at the junction of Marinwood Avenue and Miller Creek Road, the deputy got a stiff whiff of weed, Scardina said.

The driver consented to a vehicle search, and the deputy happened upon about 15 pounds of processed marijuana plus some prescription medications.

Ron Richard Cowan, 32, of Lower Lake (Lake County) was arrested at 2:37 a.m. and faces three felony drug charges in addition to driving with a suspended license and driving with expired registration.

Scardina said Cowan, who said he worked as a glass blower, was en route to San Francisco from Lake County at the time of the arrest.