$1.8 Million in Narcotics Seized in Three Seizures
Press Release
BROWNSVILLE – U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers at the Brownsville Port of Entry intercepted alleged narcotics in three separate enforcement actions that have a combined estimated street value of $1,892,620.
“Our CBP officers’ hard work and dedication has led to these significant narcotics seizures and our streets are safer for it,” said Port Director Tater Ortiz, Brownsville Port of Entry.
Packages containing 67 pounds of cocaine seized by CBP officers at Brownsville Port of Entry.
The first seizure took place on Sunday, Jan. 10, at the Veterans International Bridge when a 59-year-old male Mexican citizen from Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico, applied for entry into the United States as the driver of a 2007 Mercedes Benz autobus. The vehicle was referred to CBP secondary for further examination after a primary inspection. In secondary, with the aid of a canine unit and a non-intrusive imaging system (NII), CBP officers discovered 58 packages hidden within the autobus. CBP officers removed the packages, which contained a total of 67.18 pounds of alleged cocaine.
The second seizure took place on Thursday, Jan. 14, at the Gateway International Bridge when a 26-year-old female United States citizen from Edinburg, Texas, applied for entry into the United States driving a 2000 Honda Accord. The vehicle was referred to CBP secondary for further examination after a primary inspection due to a canine alert. In secondary, with the aid of a non-intrusive imaging system (NII), CBP officers discovered 20 packages hidden within the Honda Accord. CBP officers removed the packages, which contained a total of 23.32 pounds of alleged methamphetamine.
The third seizure took place on Friday, Jan. 15, at the Gateway International Bridge when an 18-year-old male United States citizen from Brownsville, Texas, applied for entry into the United States as the driver of a 2008 Dodge Avenger. The vehicle was referred to CBP secondary for further examination after a primary inspection. In secondary, with the aid of a canine unit and a non-intrusive imaging system (NII), CBP officers discovered 11 packages hidden within the Dodge Avenger which contained a total of 27.69 pounds of alleged cocaine and one package which contained a total of 3.52 pounds of alleged methamphetamine.
The estimated street value of the narcotics from the seizures is approximately $1,142,060, $466,493 and $284,067 respectively.
CBP officers seized the narcotics along with the vehicles, arrested the drivers and turned them over to the custody of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) special agents for further investigation.