September 21, 10

NEWS / Arizona CBP Officers Seize Record High $12.5 Million Worth of Drugs

San Luis, Ariz. — U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the San Luis Port of Entry have been extremely busy over the last four days. In the history of the San Luis, Ariz. port of entry a combined seizure of heroin, methamphetamine and cocaine had not been encountered until yesterday.

On Sept. 16, two women with U.S. citizenship applied for admission into the U.S. while driving a Ford F-150 pick up truck. The primary CBP officer referred the women to the vehicle secondary lot for further inspection due to discrepancies found during the interview process.

Once in the secondary lot, CBP officers requested the assistance of a narcotic detector dog which alerted them to the rear area of the truck. Upon closer examination, the officers discovered 54 packages of various drugs ranging from heroin, methamphetamine, and cocaine in the walls of the truck bed. The approximate weights of the drugs seized were more than 34 pounds of heroin, more than 20 pounds of methamphetamine, and more than 60 pounds of cocaine. The combined estimated street value of the various drugs is $5,813,000.

A second seizure of hard narcotics occurred on Sept. 14, when a 34-year-old man attempted admission into the U.S. with more than 83 pounds of cocaine. The CBP officers discovered the packages of cocaine concealed in the gas tank of the vehicle he was driving after a narcotic dog alerted them to the area. The estimated street value of the cocaine is $3,795,000.

On the same day, a second man, also 34-years-old attempted to smuggle more than two pounds of cocaine into the country as a pedestrian. The CBP officers noticed a bulge on the man’s body as he attempted to walk through the inspection process. During the search, the officers found one package of cocaine hidden around his waistline. The estimated street value of the cocaine is $110,000.

CBP officers also found marijuana in three separate cases. The first case occurred on Sept. 13, when a 22-year-old was found attempting to smuggle approximately 60 pounds of marijuana in all four mounted tires of the vehicle he was driving. The second and third cases occurred on Sept. 15 when a 21-year-old man and a 32-year-old woman attempted to smuggle marijuana into the country. The man was also found to have packages concealed in all four tires of the vehicle he was driving. The woman was found to have packages concealed in the gas tank of the vehicle she was driving. The combined street value of the marijuana is $2,820,000.

All individuals were turned over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the drugs were seized.

In addition, the CBP officers also arrested two individuals for attempting to leave the country while driving a stolen vehicle. The two men were turned over to the San Luis, Ariz. Police Department.

http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/newsroom/news_releases/local/09172010_4.xml