Customs seizes pot at Columbus port

By Kevin Buey
Deming Headlight
12/23/2009 12:00:00 AM MST

Customs and Border Protection reports two marijuana seizures Monday at the Columbus and Santa Teresa ports of entry.

The loads totaled 361 pounds. Arrests were made in each case.

The seizure at Columbus was just before 3 p.m., after a 2009 Ford Excursion entered from Mexico.

CBP officers at the primary inspection booth selected the vehicle for additional vehicle examination, X-raying the vehicle. They noticed a dense area in the fuel tank consistent with previous drug loads.

A CBP drug-sniffing dog searched the vehicle and alerted to the fuel tank. CBP officers removed the tank and seized 213 pounds of marijuana.

Vanessa Ann Marie Maestas, 22, of Phoenix, was arrested and transferred to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Special Agents to face federal charges.

At Santa Teresa, officers noticed a nervous driver entering the port just before 11 a.m., in a 1998 Dodge Ram.

A "Buster" density meter, X-ray equipment and drug-sniffing dog led officers to a drug load in the fuel tank.

They removed 148 pounds of marijuana and arrested Jose Espinoza Torres, 33, of Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. He was transferred to ICE agents.

CBP Field Operations is responsible for securing borders at the ports of entry. U.S. Customs and Border Protection Officers' primary mission is anti-terrorism; they screen all people, vehicles, and goods entering the United States, while facilitating the flow of legitimate trade and travel to and from the U. S.

The mission includes traditional border-related responsibilities, including narcotics interdiction, enforcing immigration law, protecting the nation's food supply and agriculture industry from pests and diseases, and enforcing trade laws.

Kevin Buey can be reached at kbuey@demingheadlight.com.

http://www.demingheadlight.com/deming-n ... source=rss