BP discovers meth in vehicle’s gas tank

On Wednesday, El Centro Sector Border Patrol agents assigned to the Highway 86 immigration check point arrested a man and a female juvenile passenger suspected of smuggling methamphetamine inside their vehicle’s gas tank, a Customs and Border Protection news release stated.

The incident occurred at approximately 5:30 p.m. Wednesday when the two subjects, who were both Vista Border Crossing Card holders, approached the checkpoint.

During primary inspection, a BP agent noticed the individuals did not having proper immigration documents.

The vehicle was referred to secondary inspection for further investigation.

In secondary, a Border Patrol canine detection team alerted to the vehicle which led to the discovery of 30 packages hidden in the gas tank.

The packages were examined and tested positive for the characteristics of methamphetamine.

The combined weight of the packages was 32.60 pounds with an estimated street value of $86,390.

The 22-year-old man and 16-year-old female, who were both Mexican citizens, were turned over to the Drug Enforcement Administration, along with the vehicle and drugs, for further investigation.

In fiscal year 2018, El Centro Sector agents have seized more than 857.71 pounds of meth.