On the morning of May 14, 2015, Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office K9 deputies arrested 59-year-old Wallace McMaster and his wife, 56-year-old Sherri McMaster, for charges including Possession of Dangerous Drug for Sale and Transportation/Sell Dangerous Drugs. The couple is from Arkansas. Both were booked at the Camp Verde Detention Center and remain in-custody, each on an $80,000 bond.
Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office (YCSO) K9 deputies stopped the truck and contacted the driver, Wallace McMaster. His wife, Sherri, was a passenger. While conversing with them, the deputy “noticed numerous signs of deception as the couple appeared more nervous than the innocent motoring public,” according to authorities. Additionally, they were unable to answer basic questions that a husband and wife sharing a destination would commonly know. This, along with additional observations, led deputies to believe the vehicle likely contained contraband in the form of drugs.
During a consent search, the K9 deputy noticed a couple of suspicious containers in the bed of the truck. He deployed his K9 partner for an exterior sniff of the truck bed and his K9 alerted on the tailgate area and door seams. During examination of a cooler in the truck bed, a deputy found that the cooler liner had been modified. Once the liner was removed, a hollowed out compartment was visible which contained over half a pound of packaged methamphetamine. Inside the cab of the truck, deputies found a marijuana cigarette.
At this point, Wallace admitted their involvement in the transportation of meth with intent to sell in his home state.