META, Ky. — A Letcher County woman who pleaded guilty a federal meth distribution conspiracy charge last month has been arrested for meth trafficking again.

Just before 1 a.m., Saturday, a state trooper pulled over a truck traveling 35 miles an hour along U.S. 119 near the Zebulon exit. The driver, 39-year-old Britia Noel Johnson, of McRoberts, turned over her license and registration, and the officer soon learned she had a lengthy criminal history and was wanted by the U.S. Marshals Service in Virginia.

On March 13, Johnson pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute more than 500 grams of meth in Abingdon federal court. She was allowed to remain free while awaiting sentencing.

Johnson was handcuffed and allowed to sit on the ground by the police car’s front tire while the trooper conducted a search. That search turned up a glass pipe in the truck.

But another officer noticed a small bag containing 3.5 grams of meth in front of the tire where Johnson had been sitting. Johnson claimed the drugs were not hers, but dashcam video showed her acting suspiciously while sitting there.

Johnson was placed under arrest and put into the police car. As the trooper backed up to take her to jail, he heard a crunching sound and felt his tire roll over something. When he went to look at what he had run over, he found a larger bag containing between 4 and 8 ounces of meth.

The officer wrote in his report that he believes the bag was missed because it had been placed either directly behind or on top of his tire. Johnson again protested that the drugs were not hers and suggested the trooper planted them.

She is now charged with meth trafficking, evidence tampering and possession of drug paraphernalia. She is being held without bond in the Pike County Detention Center.