CBP Officers Find Narcotics on Three Commercial Buses
Thursday, 17 July 2008

San Ysidro, CA. – U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the San Ysidro and adjacent Otay Mesa passenger ports of entry had their hands full this past weekend as they seized nine narcotics loads, including three on commercial buses, detained eight people with outstanding felony arrest warrants and processed 235 immigration violations.

Officers discovered marijuana totaling 2,148 pounds in nine vehicles entering the ports from Mexico during the two days.

Almost 1,400 pounds of the total was found on three commercial passenger buses that entered the U.S. Sunday morning. The remainder was discovered hidden within passenger cars entering the U.S. during the two day period.

The first two buses entered the Otay Mesa passenger port at about 6:25 a.m. and 7 a.m. respectively. In both cases, officers screened the empty buses utilizing narcotics detector dogs that alerted to the floor area of each conveyance.

Officers discovered 81 packages of marijuana weighing about 633 pounds hidden in the air conditioning unit, oil reservoir, gas tank and interior floor of the first vehicle, a 1982 TMC bus. The driver, a 45-year-old male Mexican citizen, was arrested by agents of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

CBP officers found 68 packages of marijuana weighing 530 pounds in the interior floor of the second vehicle, a 1983 MCI bus. The 42-year-old male Mexican driver was arrested by ICE agents and transported to the Metropolitan Correctional Center to face arraignment.



Officers in California find 633 pounds of marijuana concealed in parts of a commercial bus.

The third bus, a white California-plated Mercedes Setra with 19 passengers onboard, entered the San Ysidro port later Sunday morning at about 10:30 a.m. The conveyance was subjected to a gamma-ray inspection after a narcotics detector dog alerted to the fuel door of the vehicle.

Noting anomalies in the gas tank of the bus during the inspection, officers employed a contract mechanic to remove the fuel tank. Officers discovered 20 wrapped packages of marijuana weighing 231 pounds hidden in the tank. The 45-year-old male Mexican driver was arrested by ICE agents for the failed smuggling attempt.

Also during the busy weekend, CBP officers at the San Ysidro port apprehended six U.S. citizens, one Mexican and an individual from the Bahamas wanted on outstanding arrest warrants for parole, probation, fraud and narcotics violations.

Officers at the two ports of entry also processed 235 immigration violations, including migrants illegally entering the U.S. with fraudulent documents, being smuggled within vehicles or attempting to slip past CBP officers on foot in the pedestrian facilities.

Courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
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