Border Officers Seize Nearly $4.3M Worth of Hard Drugs
TUCSON, Ariz. – U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the Port of Nogales seized more than 349 pounds of heroin, methamphetamine, cocaine, and suspected fentanyl on Saturday in three separate incidents.
CBP officers at the Dennis DeConcini Crossing referred a 67-year-old Rio Rico man for further inspection of his Jeep SUV when he attempted to enter the U.S. from Mexico Saturday morning.
Following an alert by a CBP narcotics detection canine, CBP officers seized hard drugs from throughout the vehicle. Found were nearly 21 pounds of heroin, worth an estimated value of almost $560,000; 103 pounds of cocaine, worth nearly $2.5M; 116 pounds of methamphetamine, worth more than $347,000; and 1.5 pounds of suspected fentanyl, worth almost $20,000.
A few hours later, a CBP narcotics detection canine at the DeConcini Crossing alerted to a Honda sedan crossing into the U.S. from Mexico. The 21-year-old Phoenix man was questioned about the contents of his vehicle before officers removed two packages of drugs from the vehicle’s rear tires. The drugs were identified as approximately 15 pounds of meth, worth nearly $45,000.
That evening, officers at the Mariposa Crossing referred a 24-year-old Mexican national for further inspection of her Ford compact sedan. After a CBP canine alerted to the presence of drugs inside of her vehicle, officers removed 71 packages of hard drugs. Seized were more than 18 pounds of cocaine, worth more than $434,000; more than 64 pounds of meth, worth $192,456; more than 9 pounds of heroin, worth almost $245,000 and nearly 2 pounds of suspected fentanyl pills, with an estimated value of $27,000.
Officers seized the drugs and vehicles. The subjects were arrested and then turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
Individuals arrested may be charged by complaint, the method by which a person is charged with criminal activity, which raises no inference of guilt. An individual is presumed innocent unless and until competent evidence is presented to a jury that establishes guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
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