CHICORA — A Center Township couple's plan to have 10 pounds of marijuana mailed across the country to a nearby friend went up in smoke and landed them in court.

Eric T. Negri, 31, and Kristen Negri, 33, are headed for trial on felony drug charges after waiving their preliminary hearings Tuesday at the office of District Judge Lewis Stoughton.

The Negris' case dates back to around Thanksgiving 2013, when postal inspectors became suspicious about a package, shipped from California and received in Butler County two days before the holiday.

State police drug interdiction officers were notified and soon caught on to the suspects' alleged half-baked plan.

The investigating trooper would not say what provoked the suspicion about the package addressed to a home on Route 38 in Oakland Township.

Once the red flag rose, the officer said, a drug-sniffing dog was called in and “alerted” on the parcel, which originated from Sacramento.

The contents, 10 pounds of pot, later were confirmed. The suspected marijuana had an estimated street value of $3,000 to $5,000 per pound. The package was subsequently resealed for a controlled delivery, with police conducting surveillance.

The defendants' attorneys Tuesday were tight-lipped about the allegations after their clients waived felony and misdemeanor drug possession charges to court. The suspects are both free on $100,000 unsecured bail.