Two men arrested for smuggling heroin

Two Yuma men were arrested Saturday morning for allegedly attempting to smuggle heroin inside their vehicle through the Highway 111 Border Patrol checkpoint.

Alan Jesus Gonzalez-Quiroz, 19, and Jesus Francisco Alvarado, 26, were taken into custody at about 12 p.m. Saturday at the checkpoint by Drug Enforcement Administration agents.

Gonzalez and Francisco were each booked into county jail without bail on suspicion of being in possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute, county Sheriff’s Office arrest records stated.

The incident occurred at approximately 8:06 a.m. Saturday when the two men approached the checkpoint in a white Nissan Sentra, a Customs and Border Protection news release stated.

During an immigration inspection, agents referred the vehicle to secondary inspection for further investigation.

In secondary, a Border Patrol canine detection team alerted to the vehicle. Agents discovered three tightly sealed packages concealed inside of the vehicle’s rear seat area.

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

The combined weight of the packages totaled 6.9 pounds, with an estimated value of $62,100.

Both men were turned over to the DEA, along with the vehicle and the narcotics for further investigation.

In fiscal year 2018, El Centro Sector agents have seized nearly 800 pounds of heroin, valued at $7.2 million.