The seizures happened in several separate incidents at two ports of entry along the southern border in recent days.
In recent days, U.S. Customs and Border Protection seized nearly $4.3 million worth of heroin, methamphetamine, cocaine, and suspected Fentanyl at the Port of Nogales (Ariz.), and $2.3 million in cocaine and marijuana at the World Trade Bridge (Laredo, Texas), CBP said in separate press releases Monday.
The seizure at Nogales totaled more than 349 pounds.
CBP officers referred a man for further inspection of his Jeep SUV when he attempted to enter the U.S. from Mexico on Saturday, then CBP officers seized hard drugs throughout the vehicle following an alert by a CBP narcotics detection canine, CBP said. That seizure discovered 103 pounds of cocaine worth almost $2.5 million and 116 pounds of methamphetamine worth more than $347,000.
Another Nogales incident saw a canine-assisted seizure of more than $434,000 worth of cocaine, more than $192,000 worth of methamphetamine, nearly $245,000 worth of heroin, and an estimated $27,000 worth of Fentanyl from the car of a 24-year-old Mexican national.
The subjects were arrested and turned over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI), and are presumed innocent until a jury establishes guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
In another round of incidents, CBP seized a total of $2.3 million worth of narcotics at the World Trade Bridge.
The larger-value seizure happened Thursday when a CBP officer referred a Freightliner tractor hauling an empty trailer for a secondary examination, after which the tractor underwent canine and non-intrusive inspection (NII).
CBP officers discovered 99 bundles containing 264 pounds of alleged cocaine hidden in the conveyance, carrying an estimated street value of $2.03 million, CBP said.
Then, CBP officers utilizing canines and NII discovered 50 packages containing a total of almost 1,347 pounds of marijuana with an estimated street value of $269,000, in a tractor hauling a shipment of bentonite clay.
The cases were turned over to ICE-HSI for further investigation.
CBP seizes over $6.5M worth of drugs on border
