Pine Valley, Calif. - For the second time this week, U.S. Border Patrol agents have made a significant cocaine seizure. The seizures have netted more than 100 pounds of cocaine, valued at more than $1 million.
The latest seizure occurred today at about 7 a.m., when a Chevy Silverado pickup truck arrived at the Border Patrol checkpoint inspection on westbound Interstate 8 near Pine Valley, Calif. The driver, a 33-year-old Mexican national, who was a legal resident, was directed to a secondary inspection area, where a Border Patrol K-9 team conducted an exterior search on the pickup truck. The Border Patrol K-9 alerted on the vehicle, prompting agents to investigate further.
Agents discovered modified compartments within the rear quarter panels of the vehicle that contained 25 wrapped bundles of cocaine. The cocaine weighed more than 71 pounds and has an estimated street value of more than $710,000.
Earlier in the week, Border Patrol agents seized more than 38 pounds of cocaine hidden in the dashboard of a Ford Freestar minivan, which was traveling northbound on Interstate 15 in Temecula, Calif. Two suspected smugglers were arrested.
The three suspected smugglers and the narcotics from both incidents were turned over to the Drug Enforcement Administration.
The U.S. Border Patrol deploys coordinated enforcement operations and interior checkpoints as part of a defense-in-depth enforcement approach.
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.
