C.B.P. News Release

C.B.P. Officers Seize $125,000 in Marijuana, Stop Child Smuggling at Eagle Pass

(Tuesday, November 18, 2008)

Eagle Pass, Texas – U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the Eagle Pass port of entry seized marijuana valued at $125,000 and arrested two women in connection with two separate child smuggling attempts this weekend.

The marijuana seizure occurred shortly after 8 a.m. on Saturday, at the International Bridge. CBP officers referred a 1997 Ford Explorer driven by Jose Efrain Martinez Elizondo, a 41-year-old Mexican citizen from Muzquiz, Coahuila, Mexico for secondary inspection. CBP officers noted discrepancies in the cargo area and a non-intrusive imaging system scan also revealed anomalies under the cargo area floor. CBP officers conducted an intensive examination of the area and found bundles hidden in a compartment beneath the cargo area floor containing a total of 125 pounds of marijuana.

The marijuana has an estimated street value of $125,000. CBP officers arrested Martinez Elizondo and turned him over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement special agents who investigated the seizure and processed him on federal drug charges. CBP officers seized the narcotics and the vehicle.

Also on November 15, CBP officers stopped an alien smuggling attempt involving two children. At 10 p.m. CBP officers at Bridge I referred a 1999 Ford Taurus driven by Guadalupe Garcia, 38, a U.S. citizen from Harker Heights, Texas for a secondary examination. Garcia had claimed the two children in the vehicle were hers and were U.S. citizens. At secondary, Garcia presented a Texas birth certificate for a three-year-old boy and had no documents for a 2-year-old girl. During the examination, CBP officers discovered that both children were Mexican citizens from Dolores Hidalgo, Mexico. CBP officers arrested Garcia on federal alien smuggling charges and she was transported to jail. The two children were turned over to Mexican Immigration through coordination with Mexican consular officials.

In a separate incident also on November 15, CBP officers at Bridge I referred a taxicab carrying Veronica Garcia, 28, a U.S. citizen from Seguin, Texas and an 8-year-old girl. Garcia claimed the girl was her daughter and was born in the U.S. She presented a Texas birth certificate for the girl. CBP officers determined that the child was a Mexican citizen. CBP officers arrested Garcia on alien smuggling charges and she was transported to jail. CBP officers turned the child over to Mexican Immigration through coordination with Mexican Consular officials.

“The significant marijuana seizure and the two child smuggling cases all occurred on the same day this weekend. It underscores the volume of illegal activity our officers encounter at the port and their versatility and skill at discovering attempts to smuggle either drugs or in these two cases cited, young children,â€