Laguna Beach police find hundreds of prescription pills during traffic stop; woman arrested

A woman was arrested in Laguna Beach after police reported finding several hundred prescription pills in her cosmetic case during a traffic stop, authorities said.

Police received a report at about 1 a.m. Saturday of a driver speeding and weaving on Laguna Canyon Road near El Toro Road, said Laguna Beach police Sgt. Jim Cota.

Officers pulled over the vehicle at South Coast Highway and Ocean Avenue. The driver was talking on her cellphone as officers approached the vehicle, Cota said.

Officers did not suspect she was under the influence but had a feeling something was off, Cota said.

He said the woman gave officers permission to search her cellphone and vehicle.

During the search, officers said they found a cosmetic case with the woman’s name written in pink on the top and a stash of pills inside. The narcotics included morphine, Oxycodone, Xanax, Suboxone strips, Hydrocodone and methamphetamine, Cota said.

Text messages on her phone indicated she had been involved in prescription pill transactions, Cota said.

Shauna Kester, 30, of Garden Grove was arrested on suspicion of possession of Xanax for sale, possession of a controlled substance for sale, possession of methamphetamine and possession of drug paraphernalia.

She was booked into Orange County Jail with bail set at $25,000, according to jail records.

hannah.fry@latimes.com

Twitter: @HannahFryTCN