Border Patrol seize over $2 million in methamphetamines and almost two tons of marijuana

Liquid meth

In separate actions, Border Patrol agents at entry inspection stations in California and Texas corralled $2.1 million in smuggled methamphetamine and marijuana in five days.

Between Aug. 1 and 2, Border Patrol agents in San Ysidro, CA, near San Diego, seized a total of 105.47 pounds of methamphetamine from two vehicles.

On Aug. 5, border agents in Laredo, TX seized 2,770.4 pounds of marijuana hidden in a north-bound tractor trailer.

In the San Ysidro seizures, agents searched a 2005 Chevrolet Trailblazer at the I-5 Border Patrol checkpoint driven by a 37-year-old male U.S. citizen. The man aroused agents’ suspicion when he became nervous at the checkpoint, according to a statement by the Border Patrol. The vehicle was referred for a secondary inspection, where a Border Patrol K-9 team alerted during a cursory inspection of the vehicle, said the agency. Agents gave the vehicle a more thorough search and found a five gallon plastic water bottle containing a greenish liquid. The fluid in the bottle tested positive for liquid methamphetamine, said the agency. The bottle, it said, weighed a total of 47.62 pounds and had an estimated street value of $952,400. The suspected smuggler and narcotics were turned over to the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) for further investigation. 

Later in the day at about 6 p.m., a Border Patrol K-9 alerted to a 2003 Suzuki XL7 parked near the San Ysidro Port of Entry. Agents searched the unattended vehicle and discovered 28 packages of methamphetamine concealed in the rear quarter panels, said the agency. The meth weighed 57.85 pounds and had an estimated street value of $1,157,000, it said. The narcotics were also seized and turned over to the DEA.

On August 5, 2012, Border Patrol agents at the Laredo West Station in Texas seized 2,770.4 pounds of marijuana during an immigration inspection of a tractor-trailer. A Border Patrol service dog alerted to possible hidden people or contraband, it said. The vehicle was sent to for a secondary inspection, where agents discovered a false compartment toward the front of the trailer. Agents searched the compartment and found 227 bundles of a substance that tested positive as marijuana. The drug has an estimated street value of $2,216,320. The driver, marijuana, and tractor-trailer were turned over to the DEA, said the agency.