BY John Daniel Garcia, The Big Bend Sentinel
George Baird, 21, of Presidio pleaded guilty in federal court earlier this month to distribution or manufacturing marijuana in or near schools and colleges.
Baird was arrested in June for his role in the Nov. 19, 2012 bust in which nearly 500 pounds of pot was discovered in the cargo hold of a Van Horn High School bus following a basketball game in Presidio.
The marijuana was found in black gym bags by a coach and the bus driver at the Stripes parking lot in Marfa. A Van Horn employees alerted a Border Patrol officer of the suspicious bags.
Baird received 27 months in confinement, five years of probation, and was issued a $5,000 fine.
Baird's public defender, Jack Merideth refused to comment on the case. Baird is a former Marfa resident and a graduate of Presidio High School.
Anthony Paredez-Juarez, 22, Baird's accomplice in the smuggling attempt, has also pled guilty to the charge and will be sentenced at 3 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 9.
