Posted: Tuesday, March 12, 2013 11:50 am | Updated: 2:15 pm, Tue Mar 12, 2013.

By CINDY V. CULP
wacotrib.com

Local authorities are searching for several people who ran on foot after a traffic stop on Interstate 35 Tuesday morning.

At 9:24 a.m., an officer stopped a 2002 maroon Dodge pickup truck traveling northbound near Exit 323 in Lorena for a minor traffic violation, said Texas Department of Public Safety Trooper D.L. Wilson. The truck stopped long enough for the officer to get out of his patrol car but then sped away, he said.

The truck, which is registered in the South Texas town of Donna, soon stopped a second time and eight or nine people bailed out and ran away on foot, Wilson said. Officials think they are likely migrant workers who are in the country illegally, he said.

As of about 11 a.m., officials had caught five of the people who ran from the truck, Wilson said. Three are Hispanic males. The other two are Hispanic females. They are in the custody of U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement, he said.

Officials from numerous departments continue to look for the others, Wilson said. Agencies involved include DPS, ICE, the McLennan County Sheriff’s Office, the Lorena Police Department and the Bruceville-Eddy Police Department. A helicopter from the sheriff’s office is helping with the search.

Authorities search Lorena area for people who fled from traffic stop - WacoTrib.com: Traffic