A routine traffic stop for mechanical violations yielded Mariposa County Sheriff’s deputies an arrest of one man for marijuana possession. That man, Joshua Flores, was booked in the Mariposa County Jail on charges of transportation for sale and possession of more than one ounce of marijuana.

Flores was stopped on Highway 140 at Eighth Street on Nov. 25. The deputy recognized an occupant of the vehicle as a probationer with a search and seizure clause. He informed Flores that the vehicle would be searched.

Flores reportedly told the deputy that there was a small amount of pot under the driver’s seat. He failed to mention there might be more.

The deputy saw a pocket that was sewn into the driver’s seat. In that pocket was a baggy of marijuana. The deputy asked Flores if he had a medical recommendation for pot use. He said “he was working on getting one.”

All of the other occupants of the car were not under the influence and were not charged. Flores eventually told the deputy that the pot in the pocket was from a few days prior, and said he had forgotten about it.