Palencia told undercover deputies he was planning to cook the meth out of the pottery, which he said would yield more than 22 pounds of crystal meth. He said the haul would be worth about $600,000.
"In Mexico, [the pottery pieces] were dipped in liquid methamphetamine and carefully, they placed small glass squares on the vase to make it appear to be this beautiful pottery," Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said. "He was, Omar, was looking for someone to convert it out of its current form into a sell-able form, and that's where our undercover agents came in play."
Palencia was arrested on charges including trafficking in meth over 400 grams, trafficking in meth 28-200 grams, two counts of possession of a vehicle used to traffic drugs, and two counts of possession of drug paraphernalia.
"You can see the lengths drug dealers go to, to get their illegal product out on the street," Judd said.
