State police looking for Saltsburg man who they say had stamp bags marked ‘covid-19’

State police are looking for a Saltsburg man who they say had cash and 677 stamp bags, some of which were marked “covid-19,” in a safe found during an Indiana traffic stop.

Monty Gene Smith, 36, was charged on Friday with drug and related offenses after troopers pulled him over Aug. 31 in the area of Philadelphia and Fourth Streets, according to state police. He is cited with three traffic violations, including failing to stop at a red light.

In the car, troopers said they found Suboxone, stamp bags containing a white powder, a digital scale and a safe. After getting a search warrant two days later, police said $7,880 and 677 stamp bags were found inside the safe. Authorities said they believe the white powder was fentanyl, a synthetic opioid more powerful than heroin that has contributed to an explosion of drug overdose deaths in the region for several years.

Smith is described as a white man standing 5 feet, 7 inches tall and weighing 165 pounds. He has brown hair and brown eyes. Anyone with information on his whereabouts is asked to call state police at 724-357-1960.

He is awaiting trial in Westmoreland County in connection with two drug cases after his October arrest, according to online court records.

The first case stemmed from an April 2019 traffic stop in Salem where state police said he had methamphetamine. Vandergrift police in October said they found him in possession of more than $11,000 worth of crystal methamphetamine and three bricks of heroin. He has since posted bail in both cases, according to online court records.

Smith is awaiting sentencing Oct. 23 in Indiana County court in drug and driving under the influence cases, according to online court records.