A Clearlake Oaks man pulled over for speeding last week in Merced County was arrested after allegedly being found in possession of dozens of small marijuana plants and thousands of dollars in cash.

David Nilsen, 47, was pulled over at 2:40 p.m. Sept. 8 while driving northbound on Highway 99 at the north end of Merced County, said California Highway Patrol Officer Tom Killian of the Modesto CHP office.

Killian said a CHP officer caught Nilsen on radar driving his Cadillac CTS sedan 94 miles per hour in a 65 mile per hour zone.

When the CHP officer pulled Nilsen over, he detected a strong marijuana odor, said Killian. “The smell he was smelling was not burnt marijuana, it was green marijuana.”

Nilsen also presented his identification along with an expired medical marijuana card, Killian said.

While searching the car, Killian said the investigating officer found some marijuana that Nilsen allegedly had been smoking.

However, the big find was in the car's trunk, where the officer found two trays of young marijuana plants, each about 6 inches tall, said Killian.

Also in the trunk the officer found approximately $17,667, which Killian said was in different cash denominations.

Killian said the investigation is still ongoing, with CHP attempting to locate the source of the plants and determine the extent of Nilsen's alleged involvement with the marijuana.

Nilsen was booked into the Merced County Jail on marijuana cultivation and transportation for sale charges, said Nilsen.

A Merced County Jail official said Nilsen was booked on Sept. 8 with bail set at $50,000, which he posted the following day in order to gain his release.

E-mail Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

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