An Oregon man was arrested in Tennessee after police discovered a hollowed-out Bible he allegedly planned to use for drug smuggling.
Isaiah MacMenami, 40, was charged with possession with intent to sell illegal narcotics after police said they found a metal lockbox that contained multiple drugs during a search, as well as the hollowed-out Bible, WJHL-11 reported on Friday.
Officers stopped MacMenami on June 14 in a Walmart parking lot after police saw his black Nissan, which had tinted windows, leave an area known for drug activity, WJHL reported.
Man arrested for drugs in Tennessee hollowed out Bible after ‘seeing it in a movie’ https://t.co/jNsle4fYol pic.twitter.com/biqo0GhODR
— WKBN 27 First News (@WKBN) July 16, 2021
MacMenami, who was on drug probation out of Nashville at the time, refused to allow officers to search the car, according to WJHL. Agents ran a K9 unit around the vehicle which led to the discovery of the lockbox and the modified Bible, according to authorities.
Police said MacMenami admitted that while he didn’t have any contraband in the Bible at the time, he was allegedly planning to use it for future trips. (RELATED: ‘Constant Drugs, Constant Nudity’: Police Reportedly Arrest 23 During Clashes Over NYC Park Curfew)
“What, you haven’t seen that in movies?” MacMenami reportedly joked to officers according to WJHL, adding that he didn’t have any contraband present in the Bible at the time because he “didn’t even get the chance.”
MacMenami stated that the idea came to him because he “saw it in a movie one time” while staying at a hotel, which prompted him to re-create the trick.
“I’ve never seen one in person up to this date and I’ve been doing this like 15 years. I do not think it was very moralistic,” one officer told WJHL, stating that it was a “one-of-a-kind, unique find.”
MacMenami is currently in jail on felony drug charges with a $75,000 bond, according to WJHL.