CBP Seizes $1 Million Worth of Narcotics at Imperial Valley

C.B.P. News Release

CBP Seizes $1 Million Worth of Narcotics at Imperial Valley Ports of Entry this Weekend

(Monday, April 19, 2010)

Imperial Valley — U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the Imperial Valley ports of entry seized more than $1 million worth of narcotics over the weekend.

The three unrelated incidents took place at the Calexico Downtown port of entry and the Andrade port of entry where officers kept 75 pounds of marijuana, 84 pounds of cocaine, and 26 pounds of methamphetamine from entering the United States.

The largest seizure occurred at about 1:30 a.m. on Saturday, April 17, at the Calexico Downtown port of entry when officers arrested a female driver and female passenger, 23-year-old and 41-year-old U.S. citizens, after they attempted to smuggle 84 pounds of cocaine concealed inside a green 2001 Isuzu Trooper vehicle.

During the primary inspection, the officer found inconsistencies during the interview and referred the vehicle to secondary for further examination.

At secondary, utilization of a detector dog led officers to the discovery of 35 wrapped packages concealed inside the vehicle’s gas tank. The cocaine packages have a street value of $672,000.

Both the driver and passenger, residents of Norwalk and Compton, Calif., were turned over to the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents for further processing.

The second seizure occurred at about 4:00 p.m. on Sunday, April 18, also at the downtown port when officers arrested a 30-year-old male U.S. citizen driving a silver 2006 Chevy Silverado pick-up truck. The driver was referred to the secondary inspection area where a narcotic detector dog and X-ray equipment led officers to the discovery of six packages of methamphetamine concealed inside the vehicle’s spare tire. The street value of the methamphetamine packages was $273,000.

The driver, a resident of El Monte, Calif., was turned over to the custody of ICE agents for further processing.

The third seizure occurred at the Andrade port of entry at about 6:30 p.m. on Friday, April 16, when a CBP officer conducting primary vehicle inspections referred a driver and passenger, 21-year-old female and 24-year-old male U.S. citizens, in a white 2002 Chevrolet Astro van to the secondary examination area.

An intensive inspection that included a detector dog led officers to the discovery of 24 packages of marijuana concealed inside the vehicle’s gas tank. The street value of the marijuana packages was $75,000.

Both the driver and passenger, residents of Torrance and Compton, Calif., were arrested for the alleged narcotic smuggling attempt and turned over to ICE agents for further processing and transport to the Imperial Country Jail.

On all three incidents, CBP officers seized the narcotics and vehicles.

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
John Campos
CBP Public Affairs
Phone: (760) 768-2625

http://cbp.gov/xp/cgov/newsroom/news_re ... 2010_8.xml