Canadian man found with possibly stolen guns and drugs during Lufkin Lyft stop

LUFKIN, Texas (KTRE) – A Canadian woman is in the Angelina County Jail after a deputy pulled over her rental car and she was found in possession of an illegal weapon and drugs, Sheriff Tom Selman said.

On Wednesday evening, an Angelina County sheriff’s deputy was patrolling U.S. Highway 59 near the north side of Lufkin when he observed a 2024 Toyota Corolla driving north. A sheriff’s deputy stopped the vehicle and made contact with the driver of the Toyota, who turned out to be a Lyft driver from Houston. While speaking with the driver, the deputy smelled a strong odor of marijuana coming from inside the vehicle and asked the driver to exit the vehicle to conduct a probable cause search for contraband.

The woman who paid for the Lyft was sitting in the back seat of the Toyota. She was also asked to get out of the car.

A passing DPS officer stopped at the deputy’s location to provide support while a county officer conducted a search, Selman said. During a search of the vehicle, officers found marijuana in the vehicle and two large bags in the trunk. The Lyft customer, a Canadian citizen identified as Jatayah O’Day Jah-Kiara Hamilton of Leamington, Ontario, said the bags belonged to her.

When the bags were opened, they were found to contain a large number of handguns, as well as a short-barreled rifle (SBR), magazines and ammunition.

During the investigation, officers determined the bags contained 20 semi-automatic handguns, some of which were reported stolen from the Houston area. An investigation into the incident revealed that the woman flew to Houston, received a weapon from an unknown source and headed back to Canada. The Lyft driver drove her to Little Rock.

Deputies contacted U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) field agents to assist with the investigation. Evidence indicates that the Canadian is involved in international arms smuggling. An SBR is a prohibited weapon and is a criminal offense to possess under state and federal law.

Hamilton and the weapon await the arrival of federal authorities to take them into custody.

The Lyft driver was cited and released.

“The discovery of these stolen weapons has obviously prevented them from falling into the hands of criminals and street gangs. Lives were likely saved because these weapons did not find their way somewhere in the United States or Canada. Illegal guns are a valuable commodity and require large sums of money outside the United States and pose a clear danger to both civilians and law enforcement officials,” Selman said.