Rhode Island man charged after feds find 26 pounds of cocaine in kayak near Canadian border

A Rhode Island man could face up to 40 years in prison after federal agents found him with 26 pounds of cocaine in a kayak on Lake Champlain in Vermont, federal prosecutors said Tuesday.

Freddy Rodriguez, 38, of West Warwick, was encountered by federal agents behind a rented camp in Highgate, Vermont, near the Canadian border, on the night of Sept. 18, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.

Rodriguez was spotted walking to the shores of Lake Champlain with a bag, the agents said in court documents. 

Agents say that after they got word that a vessel had entered the United States on the lake and was traveling south near the camp, they saw Rodriguez load objects from a bag into a kayak and start to drag the boat into the water, the documents state.

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Rodriguez tried to flee when agents confronted him, but he was apprehended. 

Agents described objects found in the kayak as brick-like packages that contained a white powder. The powder tested presumptively positive for the presence of cocaine, according to federal prosecutors.

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The brick-like packages weighed approximately 26.4 pounds.

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If convicted, Rodriguez could spend between five and 40 years in prison. He was released on conditions of pre-trial supervision after a detention hearing Monday.