Traffic stop ends in pot discovery

SANDPOINT — A Coeur d’Alene is facing drug trafficking charges after a routine traffic stop led to the discovery of more than a pound of marijuana.

Josef Laurence Senesac was stopped by Sandpoint Police on Feb. 9 after making an improper turn at the corner of U.S. Highway 2 and Boyer Avenue shortly before 11 p.m. An Idaho Department of Correction Probation & Parole officer was riding with Sandpoint Police as backup, a probable cause affidavit said.

A K9 officer alerted to the presence of controlled substances in the vehicle, prompting its search. A half-dozen jars of marijuana were discovered, according to the affidavit. All told, slightly more than 24 ounces of the drug were recovered.

A digital scale, a small bindle of cocaine and $1,262 in cash were also recovered during the search. Senesac declined to be interviewed and asked to speak with an attorney, court records indicate.

In addition to the trafficking charge, Senesac was charged with felony drug possession and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Deputy Public Defender Catherine Enright asked on Feb.12 for a $1,000 bail due to Senescac’s local ties to the Panhandle, court records indicate. Judge Lori Meulenberg set Senesac’ bail at $5,000 and appointed a public defender to represent him.

A preliminary hearing is set for Feb. 21 in Bonner County Magistrate Court.

Senesac pleaded guilty in a video voyeurism case dating back to 2011. He allegedly used a mobile phone to film a woman in a bathroom stall on the Cedar Street Bridge.

Keith Kinnaird can be reached by phone at 208-263-9534, by email at kkinnaird@bonnercountydailybee.com and follow him on Twitter @KeithDailyBee.