C.B.P. Newsw Release

Edinburg BP Agents Seize More than $22.4 Million in Marijuana

(Monday, August 01, 2011)

Edinburg, Texas — More than 11 tons of marijuana were confiscated by CBP U.S. Border Patrol agents from the Rio Grande Valley Sector over the past five days.

The largest of the seizures occurred on July 26, at the Falfurrias Border Patrol Checkpoint when a man attempted to drive a tractor-trailer loaded with marijuana through the checkpoint. During a primary inspection a Border Patrol K-9 team alerted to the vehicle. Upon further inspection, agents found more than 11,500 pounds of marijuana, with an estimated value of more than $9.4 million, hidden within a load of cottonseed. The driver was arrested and turned over to the Drug Enforcement Administration.

Edinburg BP Agents Seize More than $22.4 Million in Marijuana in less than a week

Another large seizure occurred July 27, in La Casita, Texas, when agents assigned to the Rio Grande City Station discovered more than 1,700 pounds of marijuana, with an estimated value of nearly $1.4 million, hidden in a cemetery.

Also on July 27, a CBP Office of Air and Marine helicopter spotted two suspicious boxes on the banks of the Rio Grande near Sullivan City, Texas. Personnel onboard the helicopter guided agents on the ground to the location of the packages. Inside the boxes agents found a variety of controlled substances that are used as veterinary medicines. All of the medicines were foreign produced and illegal to possess in the United States. The contraband has an estimated value of more than $22,000 and was turned over to DEA.

Additional seizures pushed the total estimated value of marijuana confiscated from July 24 through July 28 to more than $22.4 million.

To report suspicious activity, contact the Rio Grande Valley Border Patrol Sector’s toll-free telephone number at 800-863-9382.

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.

Contacts For This News Release
Rio Grande Sector
CBP Public Affairs
Phone: (956) 289-4845

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