Traffic Stop on I-10 leads to drug arrest

On Wednesday July 23, at approx. 5:45 PM, An Austin County Sheriff’s Office Deputy conducted a traffic stop on a passenger vehicle traveling eastbound on interstate 10. The driver of the vehicle was identified as Celestino Leon-Noyala (29) of Houston, Texas. During the course of the traffic stop, a search of the vehicle was conducted and a battery was located in the trunk of the car. Deputies at the scene observed that the battery appeared to have been altered, at this time units requested assistance from Austin County Sheriff’s Office K9 “Knox”. Once K9 “Knox” and his handler arrived on scene, “Knox” indicated a positive alert to the battery. Deputies were able to remove the top of the battery, which revealed that the battery contained multiple brick shape packages. The packages contained a white powder substance that later tested positive as cocaine. A total of 6.7 kilograms of cocaine was removed from inside the battery. Defendant Celestino Leon-Noyala was transported and booked into the Austin County Jail for the charge of Manufacture and/or Delivery of a Controlled Substance.