Thread: AZ: Border Patrol pot seizures on record pace

Border Patrol pot seizures on record pace
By Marisa Gerber
For The Arizona Daily Star
Tucson, Arizona | Published: 06.27.2009

The U.S. Border Patrol is on pace to break a drug-seizure record in the Tucson Sector with the discovery of more than 1,000 pounds of marijuana this week.

At around noon Wednesday in a wash south of Arivaca, an agent spotted an abandoned 1986 Ford pickup truck. He and an agent who arrived to provide backup found 60 bundles of marijuana weighing 1,261 pounds, said Mike Scioli, Border Patrol Tucson Sector spokesman.

The lack of visible tire treads indicated the marijuana was smuggled on foot and carried to the truck, Scioli said. He estimated it took 10 people to walk the marijuana across the border. Agents did not make any arrest and believe the smugglers returned to Mexico.

The Border Patrol has seen an increase in the trend of smugglers carrying drugs across the border by foot and placing them in deserted cars, awaiting a pickup from someone else, Scioli said. He attributes it to stepped-up enforcement.

Agents in the Border Patrol's Tucson Sector have exceeded last year's marijuana seizures by 14,000 pounds through the end of May, Scioli said.
They are on pace to break the 2007 record, when agents seized 897,000 pounds of marijuana. Through May of this fiscal year, they have already seized 830,191 pounds of marijuana. The federal fiscal year runs from Oct. 1 to Sept. 30.

"We're averaging 3,500 pounds of marijuana a day," Scioli said. "That's astronomical."


http://www.azstarnet.com/sn/border/298751.php

I am so sorry, but I couldn't help it.

Interesting that the feds are just now figuring out the drug and borders problems.