A traffic stop in Wyoming led investigators to a powdery substance that was initially believed to be drugs — but turned out to be cremains of a grandmother.
The stop happened about 7 a.m. Wednesday on a stretch of Wyoming 28 in the southwestern region of the state, according to a Wyoming Highway Patrol news release.
Two men in the car were arrested, the patrol said, after troopers found trace amounts of marijuana, syringes with residue, drug paraphernalia and multiple prescription medications, including OxyContin.
Troopers also found powder in a small zip-top sandwich bag tucked inside a purple- and gold-trimmed Crown Royal whiskey satchel in the vehicle’s center console.
Investigators initially believed the substance to be “poor quality cocaine or methamphetamine.”
That was not the case.
“After scrutinizing the powdery substance, questioning the two vehicle occupants and checking with the vehicle owner,” who was not in the car, “it turned out that the small Baggie contained the cremated ashes of the vehicle owner’s grandmother.”
The vehicle’s owner told police she was “very close” to her grandma and “always keeps her nearby in the console,” the release said.
State police said storing ashes in bags inside a car console is unusual but not criminal.
“It’s a little different,” said Sgt. Stephen Townsend. “You don’t come across it everyday.”
The two men in the vehicle, Thomas Garay, 30, and Zachary Beason, 18, both from Worland, Wyo., were charged with misdemeanor possession of a Schedule II prescription drug.
The ashes were not confiscated.
Kieran Nicholson: 303-954-1822 or knicholson@denverpost.com
