CBP Officers Arrest 2 in Failed Smuggling Attempts of Cocaine, Meth Worth More than $2.4M

47 Pounds Seized in Less than 24 Hours

May 7, 2010 - San Luis, Ariz — U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the San Luis port of entry arrest two people in less than a 24 hour period for attempting to smuggle cocaine and methamphetamine worth more than $2.4 million.

“The fact that both of these interceptions involved deep concealment methods attests to the officer’s tenacity in following through with the CBP mission,” said Port Director William K. Brooks.

On May 4, CBP officers discovered more than 38 pounds of cocaine in a Dodge Durango. During the primary process a CBP officer found discrepancies in the vehicle and referred the 29-year-old driver to secondary for further inspection.

While in secondary, officers found packages in the undercarriage of the vehicle. After a narcotic detector dog alerted to the order of narcotics CBP officers determined the 16 packages contained cocaine.

The man was immediately arrested and turned over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

The cocaine has an estimated street value of $1,760,000.

The second significant seizure occurred on May 5, when CBP officers found more than nine pounds of methamphetamine concealed in a Mazda truck. After a narcotic detector dog assisting officers screening vehicles waiting to be processed alerted to the order of narcotics the 33-year-old driver was immediately taken into custody.

During the inspection of the vehicle the firewall was found to have eight packages of methamphetamine.

The man was turned over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

The methamphetamine has an estimated street value of $656,000.