The La Porte County Sheriff’s Office says it arrested a “serious violent felon” after a traffic stop Tuesday morning on the Indiana Toll Road.

At around 8:10 a.m., a deputy was stopped in the median of the Indiana Toll Road monitoring eastbound traffic near the 48-mile marker. A passenger vehicle passed by and gained the attention of the deputy. The deputy caught up to the vehicle near the 51-mile marker and saw it to be traveling less than one car length behind another vehicle. The deputy initiated a traffic stop on the vehicle near the 53-mile marker for following too closely.

The driver was identified as 41-year-old Michael C. Hendricks of Buffalo, New York.

During the traffic stop, probable cause was established for a vehicle search and a second deputy arrived to assist.

Police say the search yielded a large quantity of illegal pills and a Grand Power K100 9mm handgun.

Hendricks was taken into custody and transported to the La Porte County Jail. He was arrested for Dealing in a narcotic drug and unlawful possession of a firearm by a serious violent felon.

Hendricks remains housed in the LCJ and is being held on a $50,005.00 cash-only bond through La Porte County Circuit Court.