A Clarksburg man has been charged with possession with intent to distribute cocaine following an encounter with police in Charles Town, West Virginia, according to the Charles Town Police Department.
Police said that on October 8, officers were patrolling the east end of Charles Town when they made contact with a vehicle parked in the lot of a closed commercial establishment.
According to police, officers detected the odor of marijuana coming from the vehicle and conducted a probable cause search. During the search, officers reportedly located what police described as a distribution amount of cocaine along with currency.
Robert Flores Penaloza, 45, of Clarksburg, Maryland, was charged with felony possession with intent to distribute cocaine and misdemeanor possession of marijuana.
The arrest was one of several recent drug-related arrests highlighted by the Charles Town Police Department as part of what the department described as an ongoing effort to curtail the sale and distribution of controlled substances within the city. Charles Town Police did not provide a mugshot and shared that all defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.
