CBP Officers at Hidalgo Arrest Reynosa Man with $1M Worth of Cocaine

Man Arrested in Roma with Weapon

Hidalgo, Texas — U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Office of Field Operations officers at the Hidalgo International Bridge arrested a man from Reynosa, Tamaulipas, Mexico with cocaine valued at just over $1 million on Saturday. In a separate, unrelated, incident, at the Roma Port of Entry, CBP officers arrested a Mexican national who was in possession of a .45-caliber handgun.

“Our officers at the Hidalgo and Roma International Bridges have intercepted a load of hard narcotics and kept a semi-automatic weapon from going into Mexico this weekend,” said Gene Garza, Director of Field Operations, Laredo Field Office. “Our officers’ resilience and dedication has enabled us to keep dangerous drugs from entering our country and help keep illegal weapons from going into Mexico and into the wrong hands.”

On Saturday, around mid-morning a 2006 Ford 500 driven by a 51-year-old male Mexican national from Reynosa, Tamaulipas, Mexico arrived at the Hidalgo-Reynosa International Bridge. The driver and lone occupant presented his Mexican border crossing card and a CBP officer referred him and the vehicle for a more thorough inspection. Officers discovered 13 packages weighing approximately 31.53 pounds of cocaine which were hidden within the vehicle. CBP seized the narcotics, which have an estimated street value of $1,009,000, and the vehicle.

On Friday, in a separate unrelated incident at the Roma Port of Entry, CBP officers, working outbound operations along with state and local officers and Border Patrol agents, encountered a 2007 Chevrolet pickup truck attempting to exit the country into Mexico. The driver, a 36-year-old male Mexican national and legal permanent resident of the United States, from Rio Grande City, Texas, was referred for further inspection. During the inspection, officers discovered a .45-caliber semi-automatic handgun with a magazine hidden on the man’s person. CBP seized the weapon, magazine and vehicle.

The two adult male travelers from both incidents were turned over to the custody of Homeland Security Investigations agents for further investigation.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control and protection of our nation's borders at and between the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.