OCEANSIDE, Calif. — Two Oceanside residents onboard a small plane were arrested Thursday morning after officers discovered a kilo of cocaine inside a backpack they discarded after an emergency landing on State Route 76, the Oceanside Police Department said.
Oceanside Assistant Police Chief Taurino Valdovinos said officers responding to the plane landing on Canyon Drive observed one of the individuals throw a backpack containing more than two pounds of cocaine into nearby brush. No additional drugs were found during a search of the plane.
After officers searched the backpack and plane, Gabriel Breit, 21, and Troy Smith, 36, were arrested and charged with transporting narcotics, Valdovinos said.
The investigation has been handed over to the North County Narcotics taskforce, which Oceanside Police are part of.
WATCH: Oceanside police give update on emergency plane landing, drug arrests
According to Oceanside Police, officers received a call about the landing on Canyon Drive at 1:43 a.m.
According to police, the rental plane was arriving in Oceanside from Phoenix. Valdovinos said Briet called into authorities and reported the plan was having engine failure.
The relationship between Breit and Smith is unknown, police confirmed that there was no prior record for either person onboard. They believe the plane was a rental.
Flight tracking website, FlightAware shows the plane departed Mesa, Arizona at 11:09 pm MST. It was scheduled to land at 2:02 am.
According to public records obtained by CBS 8, the aircraft is a Piper Dakota single-engine plane. The tail number, N1711T, is registered to Leadturn LLC.
The Federal Aviation Administration will be taking over the investigation of the plane's emergency landing.
WATCH: Thursday noon update:
