Traffic stop on I-26 leads to multiple arrests for what was in car, SC cops say
Two people were arrested after the car they were in was recently pulled over on Interstate 26, according to the Lexington County Sheriff’s Department.
Neither 31-year-old Daryl Maldonado nor 24-year-old Shailie Marie Mercado were cited for a traffic violation, but both were taken into custody on the side of the highway because drugs and a gun were found inside the car, the sheriff’s department said Sunday night in a news release.
Both Maldonado and Mercado are Columbia residents, according to the sheriff’s department. They were arrested July 25, Lexington County court records show.
Maldonado was driving on I-26 in a car that had an expired license plate, according to the release. A deputy who spotted the violation made a traffic stop at the 105 mile marker on the eastbound side of I-26, the sheriff’s department said. That’s in a part of Lexington between Piney Grove and St. Andrews roads.
The deputy noticed a strong odor of marijuana coming from the car, according to the release.
“The deputy, shortly after backup arrived at the scene, started a search of the car,” Sheriff Jay Koon said in the release. “They found numerous drugs throughout the car.”
Deputies also found a pistol under the driver’s seat, according to the release.
Maldonado was charged with trafficking fentanyl and meth, cocaine possession, marijuana possession, possession of Alprazolam pills, committing a violent crime while on bond for a violent crime and three weapons charges, the sheriff’s department said.
Mercado, who was a passenger in the car, was charged with meth possession, according to the release.
Mercado has been released after meeting the conditions of her bond, the sheriff’s department said. Her bond was set at $9,000, Lexington County court records show.
Bond was denied for Maldonado and he remains locked up in the Lexington County Detention Center, jail records show.
When the traffic stop happened, Maldonado was out on bond from two separate arrests earlier this year, according to court records. On April 14, Maldonado was arrested on a weapons charge, and on May 19 he was charged with trafficking fentanyl, court records show. Bonds were set at $10,000 for each of those arrests and the charges are pending, according to court records.
In 2023, Maldonado pleaded guilty to weapons and drug charges from separate arrests, court records show.
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This story was originally published August 4, 2025 at 8:23 AM with the headline "Traffic stop on I-26 leads to multiple arrests for what was in car, SC cops say."
