Whitman County Sheriff’s Office seizes meth, fentanyl during Colfax traffic stop; two Coeur d’Alene men arrested

Two Coeur d’Alene men were booked into the Whitman County Jail after deputies located about 22 grams of methamphetamine and roughly 70 fentanyl tablets during a vehicle stop early Thursday morning in Colfax.

The incident started when sheriff’s deputies stopped a vehicle for an alleged traffic violation downtown. The deputies believed illegal narcotics were in the vehicle after speaking with the individuals and were granted a search warrant, according to a sheriff’s office news release.

Ronald Beidler, 62, and Travis Peterson, 53, were arrested on suspicion of possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver. Another passenger in the vehicle was booked on an unrelated felony warrant.

The sheriff’s office said this was the third traffic stop by deputies in the past week in which a substantial quantity of narcotics, specifically fentanyl tablets, meant for distribution in the area were seized.