Salt Lake City police say drug suspect had ..

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Police on alert for drug trafficking on a downtown Salt Lake City street say they arrested a dealer literally carrying an illicit pharmacy on his back.

The 21-year-old man, who remained in Salt Lake County Jail Monday in lieu of nearly $12,000 bail, allegedly was walking near 200 South and 500 West when he caught officers' attention about 5 p.m. Saturday.

Police say that as the man walked, several other males approached him and pulled items out of his red backpack.

Officers closed in and took the man into custody. A subsequent search of the backpack turned up a variety of controlled substances ranging from 41 grams of heroin and 35 grams of crack cocaine to smaller amounts of marijuana and methamphetamine, and assorted drug paraphernalia.

The suspect was booked into jail on suspicion of multiple felonies and misdemeanors, including possession of a control substance with intent to distribute in a Drug Free Zone, possession of drug paraphernalia in a Drug Free Zone and providing false information to police officers.

remims@sltrib.com

Twitter: @remims

Salt Lake City police say drug suspect had illicit drugstore on his back