WINNEMUCCA - Blake Uhrig, 29, admitted in Sixth District Court Monday that he had illegal drugs in his car when he was arrested in April at the Button Point Rest Area on Interstate 80 east of Winnemucca.
Uhrig, a Rock Springs, Wyo., resident, pleaded guilty to felony possession of a controlled substance for sale and conspiracy to possess a controlled substance, a gross misdemeanor.
He will be sentenced by District Judge Michael Montero on Sept. 24. At the time of sentencing, his attorney, Justin Oakes, said he will argue for a drug diversion program for Uhrig.
During his arraignment Monday, Uhrig said he was traveling alone at the time he was arrested by Humboldt County law enforcement. According to court documents, Uhrig had 16 pounds of marijuana in his vehicle and an unspecified amount of heroin.
As part of plea negotiations with prosecutors, Uhrig's attorney said his client was supposed to get his vehicle back. But it was revealed in court that the Attorney General's office might be pursing forfeiture of the vehicle.
Uhrig's attorney said he had not been notified of any such action. Judge Montero said that would not be something the district court would be involved in.
On April 3, Humboldt County Sheriff's Sgt. Lee Dove was conducting an area check of the rest area east of Winnemucca about 9 a.m. While driving through the parking lot Dove observed a man later identified as Uhrig slumped forward over the steering wheel.
Dove made contact with Uhrig to see if he needed assistance. During a conversation with Uhrig, Dove developed probable cause to believe the vehicle may have contained controlled substances. Dove deployed his drug detection dog around Uhrig's vehicle. He applied for and received a search warrant from Union Township Justice Court.
During a search of the vehicle, Dove located several individually wrapped bags containing suspected marijuana. Additional drug paraphernalia was also located as well as a substance believed to be heroin, according to a previous HCSO news release.
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