CBP seizes 140 pounds of meth over five days

Customs and Border Protection officers at the two Calexico ports of entry intercepted more than 140 pounds of methamphetamine over the course of five days, a CBP news release stated.

Between Sept. 7 and Sept. 11, CBP officers targeted motorists arriving at the Calexico East and West ports and discovered drugs stashed in various locations in vehicles, including inside a gas tank, a spare tire, doors, a truck bed and in a specially-built floor compartment.

The first seizure occurred at about 2 p.m. Sept. 7 when a CBP officer at the west port of entry encountered a 25-year-old man driving a 2000 Ford Ranger and referred both driver and vehicle to secondary inspection.

CBP officers used the port’s imaging system to screen the Ranger and, after detecting anomalies in the doors, found 19 wrapped packages of methamphetamine hidden inside.

A few hours later at the east port of entry, a CBP officer encountered a 32-yearold man driving a red Ford Mustang.

The CBP officer referred driver and vehicle to secondary.

A CBP narcotics dog alerted to the Mustang. Officers then discovered 30 packages of meth concealed inside the gas tank.

On Sept. 8, CBP officers encountered a 22-year-old male SENTRI cardholder after he arrived at the west port of entry through a SENTRI-designated vehicle lane while driving a 2012 Chevrolet Malibu sedan.

CBP officers ran the vehicle through the port’s imaging system and detected anomalies in the floor.

A narcotics detector dog alerted to the vehicle’s undercarriage, and, following a thorough search of the area, officers discovered 15 wrapped packages of meth and three packages of cocaine inside of a non-factory compartment built into the floor.

Lastly, on Sept. 11, which was the opening day of operations at the new vehicle processing facility at the west port of entry, CBP officers encountered a 26-year-old man driving a Ford Explorer Sport Trac.

While interviewing the driver, a CBP officer noticed inconsistencies and referred him for further examination.

CBP officers intensively searched the SUV and discovered anomalies in the gas tank.

Following an alert from a detector dog, officers ultimately discovered 30 packages of methamphetamine hidden inside.

The drivers, all U.S. citizens, were arrested for the alleged narcotics smuggling attempts and turned over to the custody of Homeland Security Investigation agents for further processing.

All were later transported to the Imperial County Jail to await arraignment. CBP seized the narcotics and vehicles.