A Major Trafficking Arrest Leads to Seizure of 75 Pounds of Controlled Substance

(STILLWATER, OK) – On September 17, the Stillwater Police Department Special Projects Unit was alerted to an incoming package addressed to a shipping office in Stillwater. The package was intercepted in Memphis, Tennessee, and its contents tested positive for DMT, a potent hallucinogenic classified as a Schedule I controlled dangerous substance.

The package was addressed to Kou Yang of Yale, OK. On Thursday, September 19, 2024, Yang arrived at the shipping office, where a detective, posing as the business owner, handed him the package. Yang was subsequently arrested in the parking lot for Possession of DMT and transported to the SPD jail.

Detectives continued their investigation and obtained a search warrant for Yang’s residence in Yale. Detectives, in conjunction with Homeland Security investigators, executed a search warrant, seizing 53 pounds of DMT from Yang’s residence. Between the amount seized at the shipping office and in Memphis, the total amount of DMT recovered in the investigation was 75 pounds.

Further investigation revealed that Yang’s work visa expired, and he had a prior arrest for drug trafficking in Payne County on November 1, 2022. Yang is currently on a 10-year probation for his prior arrest.

“The arrest of a previously convicted drug trafficker in this case represents a cooperative effort between Stillwater Police Department’s Special Projects Unit, Homeland Security, and other regional law enforcement partners. I’m proud of our detectives in this case and many others. They work tirelessly to combat the proliferation of dangerous drugs such as DMT, fentanyl, and methamphetamine in our community,” Lt. Cody Manuel, Criminal Investigations Lieutenant, said.

This is an arrest, not a conviction.