A Sunday afternoon traffic stop near Niland ended with a driver in jail.
According to the Imperial County Sheriff's Office, at about 4:20 p.m. Sunday, a North County deputy attempted to stop a vehicle with an apparent false registration tab on the license plate. The driver, identified as Francisco Renteria from Brawley, appeared nervous when being questioned by the deputy. Based on the registration being expired for over 12 months, the vehicle was to be impounded. Prior to being towed, a search of the vehicle led to the discovery of a backpack right behind the driver's seat. The backpack contained a stolen Berreta X4 9mm semi-automatic handgun with a loaded magazine and a baggie with over 100 blue M30 fentanyl pills, a large package of methamphetamine and a digital scale. Several blank checks from a variety of businesses were also in the vehicle along with a notebook containing the name, address, driver's license number and social security numbers of various individuals. Renteria was arrested and booked into Imperial County Jail on a multitude of felony weapon and drug offenses.