Photos: Border Busts
- Updated
Smugglers of people, drugs, money, weapons and other contraband continue to find new ways to get across the border. Check out the photos of some less-than-successful smuggling operations.
Smugglers of people, drugs, money, weapons and other contraband continue to find new ways to get across the border. Check out the photos of some less-than-successful smuggling operations.
Customs and Border Protections officers on Dec. 16, 2014, found an abandoned truck northwest of Tucson with nearly 1,700 pounds of marijuana worth about $840,000. Border Patrol agents responding to a sensor activation in the Sawtooth Mountains discovered tire tracks and called for a Customs helicopter, according to a news release from the CBP. The helicopter crew located the abandoned truck, which was covered in a tarp. Ground agents discovered the marijuana in the truck. The drugs were seized and the truck was turned over the Pinal County Sheriff's Office.
- Customs and Border Protection
On Dec. 14, 2014, Customs and Border Protection officers found 24 pounds of meth worth about $72,000 in the gas tank of a Chevrolet truck at the Mariposa crossing in Nogales. Officers arrested a Mexican national.
- Customs and Border Protection
On Dec. 14, 2014, officers at the DeConcini Port of Entry found 52 pounds of meth in the quarter panels and doors of a Ford sedan. The drugs were worth about $155,000.
- Customs and Border Protection
Customs and Border Protection officers at the Mariposa crossing in Nogales seized 64 pounds of heroin, worth aobut $905,000, and four pound of meth, valued at nearly $12,000, from a Chrysler sedan on Dec. 16, 2014.
- Customs and Border Protection
After observing five people run from the desert and jump into a Jeep Commander near Gila Bend on Nov. 20, 2014, an Ajo Station agent stopped the vehicle and arrested three male Mexican nationals who were in the United States illegally, according to a news release from Customs and Border Protection. The other two occupants, both United States citizens, were also taken into custody. A search of the vehicle revealed two loaded handguns and a machete.
- Courtesy of Customs and Border Protection
On Nov. 19, 2014, Border Patrol agents from the Brian A. Terry Station seized more than 700 pounds of marijuana, worth an estimated $350,000, found in a Dodge Durango near Naco, Arizona. When agents attempted to follow the vehicle, the driver abruptly pulled to the side of the road and ran. Agents tracked the driver to a nearby residence where Homeland Security Investigation officials assisted agents in locating the driver hiding in the house. The subject, an adult Mexican national, will be prosecuted for drug smuggling. according to a news release from Customs and Border Protection.
- Customs and Border Protection
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers seized nearly 1½ tons of marijuana hidden in bundles in a tractor-trailer rig at the Mariposa port of entry in Nogales on Nov. 17, 2014. The rig, driven by a Mexican national, was taken into an inspection area where an x-ray scan revealed an "anomaly," according to a news release from the agency. A drug dog alerted officers to the presence of narcotics inside what the agency said was an "empty" trailer. Behind a "false wall," officers found 139 bundles of marijuana with a combined weight of 2,946 pounds, which is estimated to be worth about $1.47 million, the agency said. The driver of the rig, Jose Enriquez-Anzar, 70, was turned over to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations.
- Customs and Border Protection
Border Patrol agents with the help of a drug dog found on Nov. 10, 2014, six bundles of marijuana in a suitcase in the trunk of a car at a checkpoint on Arizona 85 near Gila Bend. The woman driver of the Ford Focus was uncooperative during an immigration check at the checkpoint.
- Customs and Border Protection
Three female U.S. citizens were arrested Monday for attempting to smuggle more than 275 pounds of marijuana into the Unites States. The drugs were found in a 2001 Volkswagen by Customs and Border Protection officers at the Douglas border crossing. The drugs were worth about $138,000.
- Customs and Border Protection
Customs and Border Protection officers seized 171 pounds of marijuana, worth about $85,000, Nov. 8, 2014 at the Douglas Port of Entry. Two 17 year olds were arrested in the smuggling attempt. The drugs were hidden throughout a GMC SUV.
- Customs and Border Protection
On Nov. 9, 2014, Customs and Border Protection officers at the Mariposa crossing in Nogales sent a Tolleson, Arizona, man for a secondary inspections of his Nissan sedan. A drug dog alerted officers to the presence of drugs in the rear bumper of the vehicle. Officers found six packages of methamphetamine weighing nearly 14 pounds and worth about $41,000. The drugs and car were seized. The man was arrested.
- Customs and Border Protection
On Nov. 8, 2014, Customs and Border Protectoin officer at at the Dennis DeConcini crossing selected a Chevrolet truck driven by man from Caborca, Sonora, for further inspection. With the help of a drug dog, officers found more than 26 pounds of cocaine worth an estimated $274,000 in all of the truck’s tires. The drugs and vehicle were seized. The man was arrested.
- Courtesy of Customs and Border Protection
Bundles of marijuana dropped from an ultralight plane were seized and two people were arrested Nov. 4, 2014, in Southern Arizona. At about 3 a.m., Border Patrol agents from the Douglas Station observed the plane fly over the international border from Mexico and later drop the load near Sunsites, Arizona, according to a Customs and Border Protection news release. Agents from the Willcox Station responded to the site and found one person and a basket with 10 bundles of marijuana weighing nearly 185 pounds, officials said. Th marijuana was worth about $92,000. A second person was arrested after agents searched the area. The plane was observed traveling south into Mexico at about 4:45 a.m., officials said. The suspects, both Mexican nationals, were turned over to federal authorities and the marijuana was seized.
- Customs and Border Protection
Border Patrol agents with the help of a Customs helicopter found 1,900 pounds of marijuana in an abandoned Dodge truck in the desert west of Tucson on Oct. 21, 2014. The drugs were worth about $967,000.
- Courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border Patrol agents found 1,800 pounds of marijuana in an abandoned truck in the desert west of Tucson on Oct. 26, 2014. The pot was worth about $923,000.
- Courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Tucson Sector Border Patrol agents at the Interstate 19 checkpoint seized $165,000 worth of marijuana on Oct. 25, 2014. A drug dog alerted to an odor from a red Chevrolet Cheyenne pickup truck during primary inspection. A subsequent search of the vehicle revealed several bricks of marijuana in concealed floor compartments in the passenger cabin area and within the truck’s bed. Agents confiscated more than 330 pounds of marijuana and arrested the driver.
- Customs and Border Protection
Officers at the Port of Douglas found more than 276 pounds of marijuana hidden throughout a Volkswagen sedan on Oct. 18, 2014. The drugs were hidden throughout the vehicle, including in a tire. The marijuana was worth about $138,000. The drugs and vehicle were seized. The 22-year-old woman driving the car was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- Courtesy of Customs and Border Protection
On Oct. 18, 2014, officers at the DeConcini crossing in Nogales selected a Ford truck being driven by Juan Manuel Valdez-Aranda, 45, for further inspection after authorities said a drug dog alerted to the presences of drugs. Officers found more than 99 pounds of marijuana from within all of the trucks tires. The drugs had a value of nearly $50,000. The drugs and vehicle were seized. Valdez-Aranda was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- Courtesy of Customs and Border Protection
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the Dennis DeConcini crossing in Nogales selected a Dodge truck being driven by Carlos Ramces Romo-Garcia, 26, for further inspection Oct. 19 following a positive hit by a drug dog on the truck. Officers removed 38 packages of marijuana from a hidden compartment within the floorboard of the truck. The drugs weighed nearly 313 pounds and had a value of more than $156,000. The vehicle and drugs were seized. Romo-Garcia was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- Customs and Border Protection
A truck driver from Mexico was busted Tuesday trying to bring more than more than 3,300 pounds of marijuana into the United States. Officers found 145 bales of marijuana concealed behind a false wall. The pot had an estimated street value of nearly $1,670,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
More than $581,000 worth of heroin, cocaine and methamphetamine were found hidden in an SUV at the Nogales port of entry Sept. 29, 2014.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
More than $581,000 worth of heroin, cocaine and methamphetamine were found hidden in an SUV at the Nogales port of entry Sept. 29, 2014.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Jose Puentes-Gonzalez, 53, of Agua Prieta, Sonora, was arrested Sept. 24, 2014, at the Port of Douglas, after border officers found 160 packages of marijuana hidden throughout his Ford sedan. The 176 pounds of drugs had a street value of $88,000. Puentes-Gonzalez was referred to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. They also seized the narcotics and vehicle.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Jose Puentes-Gonzalez, 53, of Agua Prieta, Sonora, was arrested Sept. 24, 2014, at the Port of Douglas, after border officers found 160 packages of marijuana hidden throughout his Ford sedan. The 176 pounds of drugs had a street value of $88,000. Puentes-Gonzalez was referred to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. They also seized the narcotics and vehicle.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Jose Puentes-Gonzalez, 53, of Agua Prieta, Sonora, was arrested Sept. 24, 2014, at the Port of Douglas, after border officers found 160 packages of marijuana hidden throughout his Ford sedan. The 176 pounds of drugs had a street value of $88,000. Puentes-Gonzalez was referred to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. They also seized the narcotics and vehicle.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Jose Puentes-Gonzalez, 53, of Agua Prieta, Sonora, was arrested Sept. 24, 2014, at the Port of Douglas, after border officers found 160 packages of marijuana hidden throughout his Ford sedan. The 176 pounds of drugs had a street value of $88,000. Puentes-Gonzalez was referred to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. They also seized the narcotics and vehicle.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Jose Puentes-Gonzalez, 53, of Agua Prieta, Sonora, was arrested Sept. 24, 2014, at the Port of Douglas, after border officers found 160 packages of marijuana hidden throughout his Ford sedan. The 176 pounds of drugs had a street value of $88,000. Puentes-Gonzalez was referred to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. They also seized the narcotics and vehicle.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 27-year-old Tucson woman was arrested Sept. 28, 2014 after border officers found nearly $62,000 worth of marijuana in the Ford SUV she was driving across the Port of Douglas. A narcotics detection dog sniffed out nearly 123 pounds of marijuana hidden throughout the SUV. Officers seized the drugs and vehicle, and referred the subject to Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 27-year-old Tucson woman was arrested Sept. 28, 2014 after border officers found nearly $62,000 worth of marijuana in the Ford SUV she was driving across the Port of Douglas. A narcotics detection dog sniffed out nearly 123 pounds of marijuana hidden throughout the SUV. Officers seized the drugs and vehicle, and referred the subject to Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 27-year-old Tucson woman was arrested Sept. 28, 2014 after border officers found nearly $62,000 worth of marijuana in the Ford SUV she was driving across the Port of Douglas. A narcotics detection dog sniffed out nearly 123 pounds of marijuana hidden throughout the SUV. Officers seized the drugs and vehicle, and referred the subject to Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 27-year-old Tucson woman was arrested Sept. 28, 2014 after border officers found nearly $62,000 worth of marijuana in the Ford SUV she was driving across the Port of Douglas. A narcotics detection dog sniffed out nearly 123 pounds of marijuana hidden throughout the SUV. Officers seized the drugs and vehicle, and referred the subject to Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 49-year-old Phoenix man was arrested Sept. 1, 2014, at the Lukeville port of entry after a narcotics detection dog alerted to the presence of 155 pounds of marijuana in the Dodge pickup truck he was driving.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 49-year-old Phoenix man was arrested Sept. 1, 2014, at the Lukeville port of entry after a narcotics detection dog alerted to the presence of 155 pounds of marijuana in the Dodge pickup truck he was driving.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 44-year-old woman from Nogales, Arizona, woman with heroin duct taped to her body was arrested Aug. 21, 2014, at the Nogales border.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 44-year-old woman from Nogales, Arizona, woman with heroin duct taped to her body was arrested Aug. 21, 2014, at the Nogales border.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
On Aug. 21, 2014, at the Nogales border, officers found 14 pounds of cocaine, worth an estimated $145,000, hidden between the radiator and firewall of a Dodge pickup truck driven by a 19-year-old Nogales, Arizona man.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
On Aug. 21, 2014, at the Nogales border, officers found 14 pounds of cocaine, worth an estimated $145,000, hidden between the radiator and firewall of a Dodge pickup truck driven by a 19-year-old Nogales, Arizona man.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 24-year-old Douglas woman was arrested Aug. 22, 2014, for trying to smuggle 279 pounds of pot worth nearly $140,000 through the Port of Douglas in the spare tire of the SUV she was driving.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 24-year-old Douglas woman was arrested Aug. 22, 2014, for trying to smuggle 279 pounds of pot worth nearly $140,000 through the Port of Douglas in the spare tire of the SUV she was driving.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 24-year-old Douglas woman was arrested Aug. 22, 2014, for trying to smuggle 279 pounds of pot worth nearly $140,000 through the Port of Douglas in the spare tire of the SUV she was driving.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 32-year-old Avondale woman was arrested Aug. 22, 2014, after she tried to smuggle $6,000 in cash and $206,000 worth of cocaine through the Nogales port of entry in the firewall of the Mercury SUV she was driving.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 32-year-old Avondale woman was arrested Aug. 22, 2014, after she tried to smuggle $6,000 in cash and $206,000 worth of cocaine through the Nogales port of entry in the firewall of the Mercury SUV she was driving.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border officers found nearly 15 pounds of marijuana Aug. 21, 2014, hidden in an SUV and a personal watercraft belonging to an Avondale man.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border officers found nearly 15 pounds of marijuana Aug. 21, 2014, hidden in an SUV and a personal watercraft belonging to an Avondale man.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border officers found nearly 15 pounds of marijuana Aug. 21, 2014, hidden in an SUV and a personal watercraft belonging to an Avondale man.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A Yuma man was arrested Monday at the Port of San Luis trying to smuggle more than 30 pounds of cocaine into the United States in the floor of his Ford pickup truck.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A Yuma man was arrested Monday at the Port of San Luis trying to smuggle more than 30 pounds of cocaine into the United States in the floor of his Ford pickup truck.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border officers busted a man Sept. 28, 2014, trying to smuggle 18 pounds of heroin worth more than $255,000 across the Arizona border. It was hidden in the backseat of a BMW.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border officers busted a man Sept. 28, 2014, trying to smuggle 18 pounds of heroin worth more than $255,000 across the Arizona border. It was hidden in the backseat of a BMW.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border officers busted a man Sept. 28, 2014, trying to smuggle 18 pounds of heroin worth more than $255,000 across the Arizona border. It was hidden in the backseat of a BMW.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Agents at the Douglas Port of Entry found marijuana packages hidden throughout a Ford SUV, including in a wheel, on Sept. 28, 2014. A 27-year-old Tucson woman arrested after trying to cross into the U.S. with nearly $62,000 worth of marijuana in her vehicle, according to Customs and Border Protection.
- Customs and Border Protection
On the evening of Aug. 10, 2014, border officers at the Nogales port searched a GMC SUV driven by a 20-year-old Tucson man and found two packages of heroin, weighing nearly 3 pounds; more than half-a-pound of cocaine; and 25 packages of meth weighing nearly 37 pounds. The combined value of the drugs was more than $160,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border officers made two pot busts Aug. 9, 2014, that totaled almost $90,000. They found nearly 80 pounds of marijuana within the backseat of a Chevrolet truck driven by a 32-year-old Mexican man. And they found more than 98 pounds of marijuana under the bed of a Ford truck driven by a 25-year-old Mexican man. Officers used a jack to get the pot out of the truck.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border officers, on Aug. 9, 2014, arrested a 37-year-old Mexican woman when a drug dog detected narcotics in the suitcases she was carrying across the border. Inside officers found almost $98,000 worth of heroin in the lining.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border officers, on Aug. 9, 2014, arrested a 39-year-old Mexican man after a drug dog sniffed out 32 pounds of meth worth $96,000 hidden in his Toyota sedan.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
On Aug. 8, 2014, a 30-year-old Mexican woman tried to cross the border and officers found more than 4 pounds of meth hidden in the crotch of her clothing. The drugs were worth $12,500.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border officers, on Aug. 8, 2014, found 36 pounds of methamphetamine worth more than $108,000 and nearly 7 pounds of heroin worth more than $98,500 inside the backseats of an Oldsmobile SUV driven by a 20-year-old man from Mexico.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Ramon Conrado Vasquez-Villa, 61, of Coolidge, and 27-year-old Lynda Mara Villa Verdugo, of Mesa, were arrested Aug. 11, 2014, at the Port of Lukeville when officers found 113 pounds of marijuana in their GMC truck. The drugs were worth an estimated $56,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
On Aug. 11, 2014, at the Nogales port of entry, border officers referred a 49-year-old of Nogales, Sonora, man for further inspection of his Nissan SUV. Again, a drug dog alerted and officers found more than 22 pounds of cocaine worth about $231,000. The drugs were in a non-factory compartment behind the vehicle’s airbag. Officers also found a package containing more than 2 pounds of heroin, in excess of $32,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Officers at the Nogales port, on Aug. 11, 2014, stopped a Toyota sedan driven by a 68-year-old Nogales, Arizona, man and a drug dog hit on a hidden compartment between the front seats. Inside, officers found more than 14 pounds of meth valued in excess of $42,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
On Aug. 12, 2014, border officers referred a 32-year-old Tucson woman for further inspection of her Nissan sedan. A drug dog alerted to the flooring of the vehicle where officers found 20 packages of marijuana weighing nearly 139 pounds and worth about $69,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A drug-sniffing dog, on Aug. 12, 2014, found nearly 39 pounds of meth worth an estimated $117,000 in both side-walls of a Ford pickup truck bed driven by a 50-year-old man from Hermosillo, Sonora.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A drug-sniffing dog, on Aug. 12, 2014, found nearly 39 pounds of meth worth an estimated $117,000 in both side-walls of a Ford pickup truck bed driven by a 50-year-old man from Hermosillo, Sonora.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
On Aug. 13, 2014, Edson Omar Flores, 40, of San Luis, was arrested at that port of entry for trying to smuggle more than $70,000 worth of cocaine and methamphetamine into the United States. Officers found the drugs after a narcotics detection dog smelled them in the front fender wells of the Oldsmobile sedan Flores was driving.They found nearly 5 pounds of cocaine worth $47,000, and more than 8 pounds of meth valued at nearly $25,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
On Aug. 13, 2014, Edson Omar Flores, 40, of San Luis, was arrested at that port of entry for trying to smuggle more than $70,000 worth of cocaine and methamphetamine into the United States. Officers found the drugs after a narcotics detection dog smelled them in the front fender wells of the Oldsmobile sedan Flores was driving.They found nearly 5 pounds of cocaine worth $47,000, and more than 8 pounds of meth valued at nearly $25,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
At the San Luis port Aug. 6, 2014, a 31-year-old U.S. citizen living in Mexico was arrested trying to smuggle six pounds of meth worth $18,000 into the U.S at the San Luis port of entry.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border agents found almost 39 pounds of methamphetamine nearly eight pounds of cocaine in the rear quarter panels of a pickup truck trying to cross at the Nogales port of entry Aug. 6, 2014.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border officers found nearly 19 pounds of meth, worth close to $57,000 Aug. 2, 2014, in the rear quarter panel of a Ford sedan driven by a 23-year-old woman from Mexico.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Friday night, Aug. 1, 2014, a narcotics dog alerted to drugs in a Dodge sedan driven by a 21-year-old woman from Mexico. Officers found more than 11.5 pounds of heroin worth in excess of $162,000 in the oil pan.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 25-year-old Tucson woman driving a Chevrolet truck was stopped for inspection Aug. 1, 2014, at the Nogales port of entry. A narcotics detection dog sniffed out 22 packages containing $91,000 worth of meth and five packages with more than $135,700 worth of cocaine hidden in the seats of the truck.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A drug-sniffing dog, Aug. 1, 2014, detected narcotics in a Ford SUV driven by a 42-year-old man from Mexico. Officers found 11 packages of cocaine, weighing a total of 27.5 pounds, under the rear seats. The drugs had an estimated value exceeding $288,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 33-year-old woman from Nogales, Arizona, was stopped Aug. 1, 2014, while trying to walk across the border. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers searched her and found in her possession more than six pounds of heroin worth nearly $87,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A woman from Mexico was arrested Aug 5, 2014, at the Nogales port of entry trying to smuggle six pounds of heroin in her girdle. The drugs were worth $86,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Customs and Border Protection officers busted two meth smugglers in separate incidents at the Port of Nogales July 26, 2014. More than 12 pounds, are worth an estimated $36,000, was found in a Dodge pickup truck driven by Obed Jese Perez-Alejandre, 36, of Nogales, Sonora, Mexico. At about the same time, officers found 10 packages of meth weighing nearly 11 pounds and worth an estimated $33,000, in a Dodge sedan driven by Rolando Rodriguez-Chavez, 28, of Nogales, Sonora, Mexico.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Customs and Border Protection officers busted two meth smugglers in separate incidents at the Port of Nogales July 26, 2014. More than 12 pounds, are worth an estimated $36,000, was found in a Dodge pickup truck driven by Obed Jese Perez-Alejandre, 36, of Nogales, Sonora, Mexico. At about the same time, officers found 10 packages of meth weighing nearly 11 pounds and worth an estimated $33,000, in a Dodge sedan driven by Rolando Rodriguez-Chavez, 28, of Nogales, Sonora, Mexico.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Customs and Border Protection officers busted two meth smugglers in separate incidents at the Port of Nogales July 26, 2014. More than 12 pounds, are worth an estimated $36,000, was found in a Dodge pickup truck driven by Obed Jese Perez-Alejandre, 36, of Nogales, Sonora, Mexico. At about the same time, officers found 10 packages of meth weighing nearly 11 pounds and worth an estimated $33,000, in a Dodge sedan driven by Rolando Rodriguez-Chavez, 28, of Nogales, Sonora, Mexico.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Customs and Border Protection officers at the Mariposa crossing July 28, 2014, referred Christian Ortiz, 31, a U.S. citizen living in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico, for a further search of his Chevrolet truck. During the search, a drug-sniffing dog alerted to the vehicle’s front and back seats where officers found 39 pounds of meth worth an estimated $117,700.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Customs and Border Protection officers at the Mariposa crossing July 28, 2014, referred Christian Ortiz, 31, a U.S. citizen living in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico, for a further search of his Chevrolet truck. During the search, a drug-sniffing dog alerted to the vehicle’s front and back seats where officers found 39 pounds of meth worth an estimated $117,700.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Customs and Border Protection officers at the Dennis DeConcini crossing referred Jorge Humberto Lopez-Ramos, 64, of Nogales, Sonora, Mexico, for additional inspection of a GMC truck he attempted to drive through the port July 29, 2014. A drug-sniffing dog alerted to the vehicle’s driver-side door, where officers discovered 27.5 pounds of methamphetamine, worth an estimated $82,500.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Customs and Border Protection officers at the Dennis DeConcini crossing referred Jorge Humberto Lopez-Ramos, 64, of Nogales, Sonora, Mexico, for additional inspection of a GMC truck he attempted to drive through the port July 29, 2014. A drug-sniffing dog alerted to the vehicle’s driver-side door, where officers discovered 27.5 pounds of methamphetamine, worth an estimated $82,500.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 31-year-old female Mexican national was arrested July 29, 2014, for attempting to smuggle $118,000 worth of marijuana through the Port of Douglas. A U.S. Customs and Border Protection narcotics detection canine helped officers locate nearly 236 pounds of marijuana hidden throughout a Nissan sedan selected for further inspection. The drugs and vehicle were seized. The suspect was referred to Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 31-year-old female Mexican national was arrested July 29, 2014, for attempting to smuggle $118,000 worth of marijuana through the Port of Douglas. A U.S. Customs and Border Protection narcotics detection canine helped officers locate nearly 236 pounds of marijuana hidden throughout a Nissan sedan selected for further inspection. The drugs and vehicle were seized. The suspect was referred to Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 31-year-old female Mexican national was arrested July 29, 2014, for attempting to smuggle $118,000 worth of marijuana through the Port of Douglas. A U.S. Customs and Border Protection narcotics detection canine helped officers locate nearly 236 pounds of marijuana hidden throughout a Nissan sedan selected for further inspection. The drugs and vehicle were seized. The suspect was referred to Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A drug-sniffing dog found meth, coke and heroin July 24, 2014, in a Nissan sedan driven by a Sonora man trying to enter Arizona at the Nogales port of entry. Border officers found about $344,000 worth of meth, heroin and cocaine in the rocker arms of the sedan. The stash consisted of nearly 19 pounds of heroin worth $263,000; more than six pounds of cocaine, valued at about $65,000; and more than five pounds of meth, worth about $16,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A drug-sniffing dog found meth, coke and heroin July 24, 2014, in a Nissan sedan driven by a Sonora man trying to enter Arizona at the Nogales port of entry. Border officers found about $344,000 worth of meth, heroin and cocaine in the rocker arms of the sedan. The stash consisted of nearly 19 pounds of heroin worth $263,000; more than six pounds of cocaine, valued at about $65,000; and more than five pounds of meth, worth about $16,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
On July 31, 2014, at the Douglas port-of-entry border officers inspected a Mercury sedan driven by a 23-year-old woman from Sonora, Mexico and found nearly 193 pounds of marijuana hidden throughout the vehicle, including behind the backseat leading to the trunk. The drugs have an estimated value of more than $96,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
On July 31, 2014, at the Douglas port-of-entry border officers inspected a Mercury sedan driven by a 23-year-old woman from Sonora, Mexico and found nearly 193 pounds of marijuana hidden throughout the vehicle, including behind the backseat leading to the trunk. The drugs have an estimated value of more than $96,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
At the Douglas port-of-entry July 30, 2014, customs officers found 123 packages of marijuana concealed throughout a Ford Mustang being driven by an 18-year-old woman from Agua Prieta, Sonora, Mexico. The drugs weighed more than 173 pounds and have an estimated value of nearly $87,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Nine packages of meth weighing 11 pounds were found hidden in the firewall beneath the windshield wipers of a Chevy pickup truck trying to cross at the Port of Nogales July 31, 2014. The drugs are worth about $32,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Agents from the Interstate 19 checkpoint seized a Mercury sedan Aug. 2, 2014, and arrested a U.S. citizen after a drug-sniffing dog led agents to the discovery of almost eight pounds of methamphetamine concealed in a false compartment in the rear seat. The drugs were worth more than $123,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Nogales Border Patrol agents on July 30, 2014, discovered an abandoned package of heroin near the Interstate 19 checkpoint. The seizure was worth nearly $54,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A sensor activation July 27, 2014, along the border led agents to apprehend eight illegal immigrants dressed in camouflage clothing near Naco. Those arrested had “carpet booties on their shoes,” to avoid leaving impressions.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border Patrol agents arrested a U.S. citizen July 25, 2014, at the State Route 83 checkpoint near Sonoita, after a search of his Buick sedan revealed a firearm, gun magazines, ammunition and six bundles of marijuana. The narcotic seizure was valued at almost $72,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border Patrol agents arrested a U.S. citizen July 25, 2014, at the State Route 83 checkpoint near Sonoita, after a search of his Buick sedan revealed a firearm, gun magazines, ammunition and six bundles of marijuana. The narcotic seizure was valued at almost $72,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
On July 21, 2014, a drug-sniffing dog at the Nogales port of entry detected narcotics in a Chevrolet Sedan. Customs and Border Protection officers found 13 pounds of heroin, valued at nearly $185,000, concealed within the vehicle’s frame.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A woman from Agua Prieta, Sonora, was arrested July 30, 2014, for attempting to smuggle 246 pounds of marijuana through the Douglas port of entry. The pot had a street value of $123,000. It was hidden in the vehicle’s seats, undercarriage and spare tire.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A woman from Agua Prieta, Sonora, was arrested July 30, 2014, for attempting to smuggle 246 pounds of marijuana through the Douglas port of entry. The pot had a street value of $123,000. It was hidden in the vehicle’s seats, undercarriage and spare tire.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
On July 12, 2014, Casa Grande Border Patrol agents seized more than 2,000 pounds of marijuana from a Chevrolet pickup truck abandoned by smugglers near Santa Cruz. The pot had a street value of more than $1 million. Agents also arrested two people in a scout vehicle near Pisinemo related to the incident.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
On July 12, 2014, Casa Grande Border Patrol agents seized more than 2,000 pounds of marijuana from a Chevrolet pickup truck abandoned by smugglers near Santa Cruz. The pot had a street value of more than $1 million. Agents also arrested two people in a scout vehicle near Pisinemo related to the incident.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
On July 12, 2014, Casa Grande Border Patrol agents seized more than 2,000 pounds of marijuana from a Chevrolet pickup truck abandoned by smugglers near Santa Cruz. The pot had a street value of more than $1 million. Agents also arrested two people in a scout vehicle near Pisinemo related to the incident.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
On July 9, 2014, Willcox Border Patrol agents arrested three people for narcotics smuggling at the Highway 80 checkpoint near Tombstone. A drug-sniffing dog detected narcotics in a Chevrolet Silverado and a search turned up 37 wrapped bricks of marijuana concealed in a false compartment in the truck’s bed. The seizure was worth more than $119,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
On July 9, 2014, Willcox Border Patrol agents arrested three people for narcotics smuggling at the Highway 80 checkpoint near Tombstone. A drug-sniffing dog detected narcotics in a Chevrolet Silverado and a search turned up 37 wrapped bricks of marijuana concealed in a false compartment in the truck’s bed. The seizure was worth more than $119,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
On July 9, 2014, Willcox Border Patrol agents arrested three people for narcotics smuggling at the Highway 80 checkpoint near Tombstone. A drug-sniffing dog detected narcotics in a Chevrolet Silverado and a search turned up 37 wrapped bricks of marijuana concealed in a false compartment in the truck’s bed. The seizure was worth more than $119,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
On July 9, 2014, Willcox Border Patrol agents arrested three people for narcotics smuggling at the Highway 80 checkpoint near Tombstone. A drug-sniffing dog detected narcotics in a Chevrolet Silverado and a search turned up 37 wrapped bricks of marijuana concealed in a false compartment in the truck’s bed. The seizure was worth more than $119,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Tucson Sector Border Patrol agents seized a pick-up truck loaded with 1,216 pounds of marijuana after the driver attempted to evade the Arivaca checkpoint June 27, 2014.
Agents patrolling in Amado responded to a suspicious vehicle traveling cross-country through a local ranch directly south of the Arivaca checkpoint. Agents saw a green Dodge truck break through a barbed wire fence while entering the roadway near their location. They attempted to follow the truck, which was driving erratically.
The vehicle came to an abrupt stop in a nearby residential area and the occupants got out and ran, abandoning 55 bundles of marijuana worth about $608,000. They were not caught.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Tucson Sector Border Patrol agents seized a pick-up truck loaded with 1,216 pounds of marijuana after the driver attempted to evade the Arivaca checkpoint June 27, 2014.
Agents patrolling in Amado responded to a suspicious vehicle traveling cross-country through a local ranch directly south of the Arivaca checkpoint. Agents saw a green Dodge truck break through a barbed wire fence while entering the roadway near their location. They attempted to follow the truck, which was driving erratically.
The vehicle came to an abrupt stop in a nearby residential area and the occupants got out and ran, abandoning 55 bundles of marijuana worth about $608,000. They were not caught.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Tucson Sector Border Patrol agents seized a pick-up truck loaded with 1,216 pounds of marijuana after the driver attempted to evade the Arivaca checkpoint June 27, 2014.
Agents patrolling in Amado responded to a suspicious vehicle traveling cross-country through a local ranch directly south of the Arivaca checkpoint. Agents saw a green Dodge truck break through a barbed wire fence while entering the roadway near their location. They attempted to follow the truck, which was driving erratically.
The vehicle came to an abrupt stop in a nearby residential area and the occupants got out and ran, abandoning 55 bundles of marijuana worth about $608,000. They were not caught.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Tucson Sector Border Patrol agents seized a pick-up truck loaded with 1,216 pounds of marijuana after the driver attempted to evade the Arivaca checkpoint June 27, 2014.
Agents patrolling in Amado responded to a suspicious vehicle traveling cross-country through a local ranch directly south of the Arivaca checkpoint. Agents saw a green Dodge truck break through a barbed wire fence while entering the roadway near their location. They attempted to follow the truck, which was driving erratically.
The vehicle came to an abrupt stop in a nearby residential area and the occupants got out and ran, abandoning 55 bundles of marijuana worth about $608,000. They were not caught.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Tucson Sector Border Patrol agents seized a pick-up truck loaded with 1,216 pounds of marijuana after the driver attempted to evade the Arivaca checkpoint June 27, 2014.
Agents patrolling in Amado responded to a suspicious vehicle traveling cross-country through a local ranch directly south of the Arivaca checkpoint. Agents saw a green Dodge truck break through a barbed wire fence while entering the roadway near their location. They attempted to follow the truck, which was driving erratically.
The vehicle came to an abrupt stop in a nearby residential area and the occupants got out and ran, abandoning 55 bundles of marijuana worth about $608,000. They were not caught.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
It was a case of Smuggle Me Elmo at an Arizona border crossing July 1, 2014, when officers found two live parrots hidden in a large stuffed Sesame Street character.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
It was a case of Smuggle Me Elmo at an Arizona border crossing July 1, 2014, when officers found two live parrots hidden in a large stuffed Sesame Street character.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
On June 22, 2014, border patrol agents near Naco arrested two U.S. citizens who were smuggling three immigrants in their Oldsmobile sedan — one in the car and two in the trunk.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
On June 15, 2014, Ajo Border Patrol agents discovered more than 2,100 pounds of marijuana worth nearly $1.1 million hidden in brush near Lukeville.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
An 18-year-old man, on June 23, 2014, tried to smuggle $13,600 worth of methamphetamine across the border in an accordion.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
About 4.5 pounds of meth worth more than $13,500 was hidden in an accordion that Eloy Renteria-Ortiz of Mexico, tried to smuggle through the Nogales port of entry June 23, 2014.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Two women were arrested in separate incidents June 25, 2014, at the Douglas port of entry after drug dogs sniffed out $131,000 worth of pot they were trying to smuggle across the border in their cars.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Two women were arrested in separate incidents June 25, 2014, at the Douglas port of entry after drug dogs sniffed out $131,000 worth of pot they were trying to smuggle across the border in their cars.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Two women were arrested in separate incidents June 25, 2014, at the Douglas port of entry after drug dogs sniffed out $131,000 worth of pot they were trying to smuggle across the border in their cars.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A woman, driving across the border with her 3-year-old daughter, was busted June 23, 2014, after officers found more than 300 pounds of pot in her SUV.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A woman, driving across the border with her 3-year-old daughter, was busted June 23, 2014, after officers found more than 300 pounds of pot in her SUV.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A woman, driving across the border with her 3-year-old daughter, was busted June 23, 2014, after officers found more than 300 pounds of pot in her SUV.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A woman, driving across the border with her 3-year-old daughter, was busted June 23, 2014, after officers found more than 300 pounds of pot in her SUV.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Seven people were arrested and 89 pounds of white heroin were seized June 13, 2014, in Tucson as part of a DEA 11-month investigation called "Operation Smack Talk," that targeted a large-scale Mexican heroin trafficking organization responsible for distributing hundreds of pounds of heroin from Tucson to various cities on the west coast.
- U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration
Seven people were arrested and 89 pounds of white heroin were seized June 13, 2014, in Tucson as part of a DEA 11-month investigation called "Operation Smack Talk," that targeted a large-scale Mexican heroin trafficking organization responsible for distributing hundreds of pounds of heroin from Tucson to various cities on the west coast.
- U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration
Seven people were arrested and 89 pounds of white heroin were seized June 13, 2014, in Tucson as part of a DEA 11-month investigation called "Operation Smack Talk," that targeted a large-scale Mexican heroin trafficking organization responsible for distributing hundreds of pounds of heroin from Tucson to various cities on the west coast.
- U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration
Seven people were arrested and 89 pounds of white heroin were seized June 13, 2014, in Tucson as part of a DEA 11-month investigation called "Operation Smack Talk," that targeted a large-scale Mexican heroin trafficking organization responsible for distributing hundreds of pounds of heroin from Tucson to various cities on the west coast.
- U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration
On June 14, 2014, at a checkpoint near Why, a sedan was directed for additional inspection after the occupants became argumentative with agents. About 126 pounds of pot was found in the trunk.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
On June 14, 2014, at a checkpoint near Why, a sedan was directed for additional inspection after the occupants became argumentative with agents. About 126 pounds of pot was found in the trunk.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
At the Nogales port of entry June 14, 2014, a 27-year-old Mexican man was arrested after officers found meth and heroin in the Kentworth tractor he was driving. The 44 pounds of meth and 25 pounds of heroin were hidden in the smoke stack mufflers. The stash totaled $485,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
At the Nogales port of entry June 14, 2014, a 27-year-old Mexican man was arrested after officers found meth and heroin in the Kentworth tractor he was driving. The 44 pounds of meth and 25 pounds of heroin were hidden in the smoke stack mufflers. The stash totaled $485,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
At the Nogales port of entry June 14, 2014, a 27-year-old Mexican man was arrested after officers found meth and heroin in the Kentworth tractor he was driving. The 44 pounds of meth and 25 pounds of heroin were hidden in the smoke stack mufflers. The stash totaled $485,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
At the Nogales port of entry June 14, 2014, a 27-year-old Mexican man was arrested after officers found meth and heroin in the Kentworth tractor he was driving. The 44 pounds of meth and 25 pounds of heroin were hidden in the smoke stack mufflers. The stash totaled $485,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
At the San Luis port of entry June 15, 2014, officers searched a 33-year-old Sonora, Mexico, woman who was crossing on foot. They found traces of marijuana in her purse more than 10 pounds of heroin taped to her abdomen. The drugs were valued at more than $141,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
At the San Luis port of entry June 13, 2014, 35 pounds of crystal meth in the doors and rear seats of a Toyota sedan.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
At the San Luis port of entry June 13, 2014, 35 pounds of crystal meth in the doors and rear seats of a Toyota sedan.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Rosario Garcia-Torrez, 39, of Mexico, was arrested June 14, 2014, for trying to smuggle more than $100,000 worth of marijuana through the Douglas port of entry in her SUV.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Rosario Garcia-Torrez, 39, of Mexico, was arrested June 14, 2014, for trying to smuggle more than $100,000 worth of marijuana through the Douglas port of entry in her SUV.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A border patrol canine team working June 1, 2014, along State Route 80 near Tombstone found 40 pounds of cocaine hidden in a sedan driving through a checkpoint. Agents detained four U.S. citizens after the dog alerted to drugs in their 1997 Chevrolet Malibu. A search of the car turned up 16 bricks of cocaine hidden in a non-factory compartment in the front bumper behind the fog lights.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A border patrol canine team working June 1, 2014, along State Route 80 near Tombstone found 40 pounds of cocaine hidden in a sedan driving through a checkpoint. Agents detained four U.S. citizens after the dog alerted to drugs in their 1997 Chevrolet Malibu. A search of the car turned up 16 bricks of cocaine hidden in a non-factory compartment in the front bumper behind the fog lights.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A border patrol canine team working June 1, 2014, along State Route 80 near Tombstone found 40 pounds of cocaine hidden in a sedan driving through a checkpoint. Agents detained four U.S. citizens after the dog alerted to drugs in their 1997 Chevrolet Malibu. A search of the car turned up 16 bricks of cocaine hidden in a non-factory compartment in the front bumper behind the fog lights.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border Patrol agents seized a truck designed to look like a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service vehicle along with a flatbed trailer containing more than 3,200 pounds of marijuana near Douglas on June 2, 2014.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border Patrol agents seized a truck designed to look like a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service vehicle along with a flatbed trailer containing more than 3,200 pounds of marijuana near Douglas on June 2, 2014.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border Patrol agents seized a truck designed to look like a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service vehicle along with a flatbed trailer containing more than 3,200 pounds of marijuana near Douglas on June 2, 2014.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
During a vehicle stop May 28 near Nogales, Border Patrol agents arrested two U.S. citizens attempting to smuggle an illegal immigrant in the trunk of their Ford Focus. All three were taken into custody.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
On May 27, Border Patrol agents responding to a report of a suspicious vehicle near Sells, found an abandoned Dodge pickup truck containing 72 bricks of marijuana worth approximately $806,000 in the bed and cab. The truck, reported stolen out of Phoenix.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
On May 21, 2014, Border Patrol agents seized seven bundles of marijuana, worth more than $167,000, from an abandoned all-terrain vehicle near Why.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
On May 18, 2014, Border Patrol agents discovered an abandon truck loaded with nearly 1,900 pounds of marijuana, worth more than $900,000, near San Simon. The vehicle had been reported stolen out of Phoenix.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
On May 18, 2014, Border Patrol agents discovered an abandon truck loaded with nearly 1,900 pounds of marijuana, worth more than $900,000, near San Simon. The vehicle had been reported stolen out of Phoenix.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border Patrol agents seized more than 4 tons of marijuana worth about $2.2 million hidden in a semi-truck and livestock trailer near Whetstone June 4, 2014. Agents thought it was sketchy that the ventilation holes in the livestock trailer were covered.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border Patrol agents seized more than 4 tons of marijuana worth about $2.2 million hidden in a semi-truck and livestock trailer near Whetstone June 4, 2014. Agents thought it was sketchy that the ventilation holes in the livestock trailer were covered.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border Patrol agents seized more than 4 tons of marijuana worth about $2.2 million hidden in a semi-truck and livestock trailer near Whetstone June 4, 2014. Agents thought it was sketchy that the ventilation holes in the livestock trailer were covered.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Three local women were arrested June 3, 2014, for attempting to smuggle nearly 13 pounds of cocaine in their undergarments through the Port of Nogales.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 22-year-old Mexican woman living in Douglas was arrested May 30, 2014, for trying to smuggle 330 pounds of marijuana across the border in the doors, undercarriage and engine compartment of an SUV.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 22-year-old Mexican woman living in Douglas was arrested May 30, 2014, for trying to smuggle 330 pounds of marijuana across the border in the doors, undercarriage and engine compartment of an SUV.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Juan Carlos Terrazas, 23, of Queen Creek, who was a passenger in a Lincoln Continental, was arrested June 5, 2014, after U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers found nearly five pounds of heroin around his torso. The heroin was valued at about $70,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Juan Carlos Terrazas, 23, of Queen Creek, who was a passenger in a Lincoln Continental, was arrested June 5, 2014, after U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers found nearly five pounds of heroin around his torso. The heroin was valued at about $70,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Fernando Sanchez-Andrade, 63, of Sonora, was arrested June 5, 2014, after U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers found 42 packages of marijuana in his Chevrolet truck. The marijuana weighed 316 pounds and was valued at about $158,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Fernando Sanchez-Andrade, 63, of Sonora, was arrested June 5, 2014, after U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers found 42 packages of marijuana in his Chevrolet truck. The marijuana weighed 316 pounds and was valued at about $158,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Luis Enrique Morales-Carrizoza, 48, of Nogales, Sonora, was arrested June 5, 2014, after U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers found 32 packages of methamphetamine in a compartment of his Dodge truck. The drugs weighed nearly 34 pounds and had an estimated value of $100,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 50-year-old Mexican man was busted May 31, 2014, at the Nogales port of entry after a drug-sniffing dog alerted to narcotics in Chevy pickup truck he was driving. Agents found more than 294 pounds of marijuana valued at nearly $147,000, concealed inside a shipment of patio tiles.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 50-year-old Mexican man was busted May 31, 2014, at the Nogales port of entry after a drug-sniffing dog alerted to narcotics in Chevy pickup truck he was driving. Agents found more than 294 pounds of marijuana valued at nearly $147,000, concealed inside a shipment of patio tiles.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
On May 30, 2014, 21-year-old Yesenia Durazo-Valencia of Agua Prieta, Sonora, was caught with nearly 388 pounds of marijuana in the SUV she was driving across the Douglas port. The marijuana had a street value of almost $194,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
On May 30, 2014, 21-year-old Yesenia Durazo-Valencia of Agua Prieta, Sonora, was caught with nearly 388 pounds of marijuana in the SUV she was driving across the Douglas port. The marijuana had a street value of almost $194,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
At the Nogales pedestrian crossing May 19, 2014, 22-year-old Saul Beltran of Chandler, was arrested for trying to smuggle 2.5 pounds of heroin into the U.S. Beltran had three packages of heroin not-so-discretely taped to his abdomen and groin area. The heroin was worth almost $36,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
At the Nogales pedestrian crossing May 19, 2014, 22-year-old Saul Beltran of Chandler, was arrested for trying to smuggle 2.5 pounds of heroin into the U.S. Beltran had three packages of heroin not-so-discretely taped to his abdomen and groin area. The heroin was worth almost $36,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
On May 18, 2014, border officers found 19 pounds of cocaine, worth more than $200,000, in a vehicle driven by a 26-year-old man from Hermosillo, Sonora.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
On May 18, 2014, border officers found 19 pounds of cocaine, worth more than $200,000, in a vehicle driven by a 26-year-old man from Hermosillo, Sonora.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A drug-sniffing dog alerted to the presence of narcotics, May 17, 2014, in a Nissan pickup truck driven by a 48-year-old man from Nogales, Sonora. Officers found 23 pounds of meth – worth nearly $70,000 – in a spare tire.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A drug-sniffing dog alerted to the presence of narcotics, May 17, 2014, in a Nissan pickup truck driven by a 48-year-old man from Nogales, Sonora. Officers found 23 pounds of meth – worth nearly $70,000 – in a spare tire.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border officers found nearly 13 pounds of heroin and almost 10 pounds of meth, May 16, 2014, hidden in a Chevrolet sedan driven by a 28-year-old woman from Nogales, Sonora. The drugs had a street value of $208,500.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border officers found nearly 13 pounds of heroin and almost 10 pounds of meth, May 16, 2014, hidden in a Chevrolet sedan driven by a 28-year-old woman from Nogales, Sonora. The drugs had a street value of $208,500.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border officers found nearly 13 pounds of heroin and almost 10 pounds of meth May 16, 2014, hidden in a Chevrolet sedan driven by a 28-year-old woman from Nogales, Sonora. The drugs had a street value of $208,500.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 33-year-old Nogales, Sonora man was arrested May 20, 2014, trying to smuggle nearly $300,000 worth of cocaine into the U.S. The drugs were hidden in a non-factory compartment within the tractor-trailer's frame.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
An Arizona man is accused of trying to smuggle 2.5 pounds of heroin across the border at Nogales by hiding it under his shirt, officials said.
Saul Beltran, 22, of Chandler, was stopped Monday as he walked across the Morley pedestrian crossing, according to a news release from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Officers say they found three packages of heroin wrapped around Beltran's stomach and groin.
The heroin valued at about $36,000 was seized and Beltran was referred to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
A drug-sniffing dog found 22 pounds of meth, worth $66,000 hidden in the dashboard of a Dodge sedan May 15, 2014, as the driver was trying to cross into the U.S. at the San Luis port of entry.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Officers at the Douglas port of entry May 14, 2014, inspected a Ford pickup truck and found 44 packages of marijuana in the gas tank. The drugs weighed more than 43 pounds and were worth about $22,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
After a dog alerted to narcotics in a Saturn officers found 170 packages — 236 pounds — of marijuana from the bumpers and undercarriage of a car trying to cross into Arizona at the Douglas port of entry May 14, 2014.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A drug dog, on May 14, 2014, sniffed out 14 pounds of meth and 3 pounds of heroin hidden in the gas tank and rear seats of a Nissan sedan at the Nogales port of entry.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Customs and Border Protection officers found more than 6,700 pounds of marijuana divided into 465 packages, hidden in a non-factory compartment in the front wall of a tractor-trailer at the Nogales port of entry May 14, 2014.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A narcotics detection dog, on May 9, 2014, sniffed out $67,000 worth of crystal methamphetamine hidden in the spare tire of a Jeep SUV driven by a 30-year-old Southern Arizona man at the San Luis port of entry.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A narcotics detection dog, on May 9, 2014, sniffed out $67,000 worth of crystal methamphetamine hidden in the spare tire of a Jeep SUV driven by a 30-year-old Southern Arizona man at the San Luis port of entry.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Julian Obeso-Acosta, 44, of Agua Prieta, Sonora, was arrested at the Port of Douglas for trying to smuggle $110,000 worth of marijuana into the U.S. in the headliner of his van.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Julian Obeso-Acosta, 44, of Agua Prieta, Sonora, was arrested at the Port of Douglas for trying to smuggle $110,000 worth of marijuana into the U.S. in the headliner of his van.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Andrea Marie Moreno, 24, of Tucson, was arrested May 9, 2014, when she tried to smuggle 4 pounds of methamphetamine across the Nogales border taped to her torso.
Andrea Marie Moreno, 24, of Tucson, was arrested May 9, 2014, when she tried to smuggle 4 pounds of methamphetamine across the Nogales border taped to her torso.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Geovanna Carrillo-Valencia, 34, of Hermosillo, Sonora, was taken into custody May 9, 2014, for trying to smuggle heroin and methamphetamine across the Nogales border in the trunk of her Nissan.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A drug-sniffing dog got a snoot full May 7, 2014, when he found $1.2 million worth of marijuana, hidden in a tractor-trailer of jalapenos.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 49-year-old man from Mexico was arrested May 6, 2014, after officers searched his Ford pickup truck at the San Luis port of entry and found more than 6 pounds of meth hidden in the truck’s manifold. The drugs were valued at $18,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 49-year-old man from Mexico was arrested May 6, 2014, after officers searched his Ford pickup truck at the San Luis port of entry and found more than 6 pounds of meth hidden in the truck’s manifold. The drugs were valued at $18,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 41-year-old Phoenix woman was busted May 6, 2014, at the Nogales port of entry with 4 pounds of methamphetamine taped to her body.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Marco Antonio Moreno-Ramirez, 22, of Nogales, Ariz., was arrested May 5, 2014, at the Dennis DeConcini crossing trying to smuggle 30 pounds of methamphetamine into the U.S. in a trailer he was towing behind his GMC SUV. The meth was valued at nearly $91,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Marco Antonio Moreno-Ramirez, 22, of Nogales, Ariz., was arrested May 5, 2014, at the Dennis DeConcini crossing trying to smuggle 30 pounds of methamphetamine into the U.S. in a trailer he was towing behind his GMC SUV. The meth was valued at nearly $91,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 61-year-old Glendale man was arrested May 5, 2014, at the Lukeville port of entry trying to smuggle more than 600 pounds of marijuana into the United States. Customs and Border Protection officers found the pot in an RV driven by referred John Walter Swanson. It had a street value of $304,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 61-year-old Glendale man was arrested May 5, 2014, at the Lukeville port of entry trying to smuggle more than 600 pounds of marijuana into the United States. Customs and Border Protection officers found the pot in an RV driven by referred John Walter Swanson. It had a street value of $304,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Jesus Martin Garcia-Martan, and his passenger, Juan Alonso Ruiz-Nunez, both 25-year-olds from Mexico, were arrested March 14, 2014, for attempting to smuggle more than 21 pounds of heroin, worth nearly $288,000, through the Port of Naco. Officers found 11 packages of heroin in the Nissan Garcia-Martan was driving.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Jesus Martin Garcia-Martan, and his passenger, Juan Alonso Ruiz-Nunez, both 25-year-olds from Mexico, were arrested March 14, 2014, for attempting to smuggle more than 21 pounds of heroin, worth nearly $288,000, through the Port of Naco. Officers found 11 packages of heroin in the Nissan Garcia-Martan was driving.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 56-year-old male Mexican man was arrested March 16, 2014,at a Nogales port of entry for trying smuggle nearly 26 pounds of methamphetamine, valued at nearly $398,000. A drug-sniffing dog alerted to the presence of narcotics in the Toyota sedan driven by Jose Eduardo Garcia-Rocha. Officers found 21 packages of meth hidden in the car’s rocker panels.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 56-year-old male Mexican man was arrested March 16, 2014,at a Nogales port of entry for trying smuggle nearly 26 pounds of methamphetamine, valued at nearly $398,000. A drug-sniffing dog alerted to the presence of narcotics in the Toyota sedan driven by Jose Eduardo Garcia-Rocha. Officers found 21 packages of meth hidden in the car’s rocker panels.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 38-year-old Mexican woman was arrested March 19, 2014, for trying to smuggle nearly 5 pounds of heroin in her undergarments as she crossed the Nogales port of entry. Officers found two packages of heroin in Cristina Luna-Ramos’ bra and two more “in her groin area.” The drugs, worth more than $67,000, and her vehicle were seized.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A drug sniffing dog found nearly 100 pounds of pot hidden in the tires of a pickup truck being driven across the Douglas port of entry March 30, 2014, by a 48-year-old Sonora, Mexico, man. The pot had estimated value of $49,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A drug sniffing dog found nearly 100 pounds of pot hidden in the tires of a pickup truck being driven across the Douglas port of entry March 30, 2014, by a 48-year-old Sonora, Mexico, man. The pot had estimated value of $49,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A drug sniffing dog found nearly 100 pounds of pot hidden in the tires of a pickup truck being driven across the Douglas port of entry March 30, 2014, by a 48-year-old Sonora, Mexico, man. The pot had estimated value of $49,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
The assistance of medical personnel was required to remove nearly a quarter pound of methamphetamine being smuggled by a 22-year-old Tucson woman March 30, 2014, at a Nogales port of entry. Customs officers did not say where the woman had stashed the drugs, but the meth had a street value of nearly $3,900.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 22-year-old Mesa woman was arrested March 29, 2014, at a Nogales port of entry with 2.3 pounds of heroin on her. It had a street value of $32,300.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 25-year-old Mexican man was arrested March 29, 2014, at a Nogales port of entry after a drug-sniffing dog detected almost 13 pounds of methamphetamine worth $200,500 in the Nissan sedan.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A drug sniffing dog found a pound of methamphetamine, 12.5 pounds of cocaine and 15 pounds of heroin in the floorboards of a Pontiac sedan being driven by a 30-year-old Phoenix woman trying to cross into the U.S. March 29, 2014, at a Nogales port of entry. The drugs had a street value of nearly $337,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Nearly a pound of methamphetamine worth more than $15,000 was found on a 30-year-old March 28, 2014 trying to walk across the border at a Nogales port of entry.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Officers at a Nogales port of entry March 31, 2014, found almost 11 pounds of methamphetamine in a van driven by Fernando Cejudo-Nevarez, 40, of Nogales, Sonora. A drug-sniffing dog found the meth in the Chrysler’s rear quarter panels. It had a street value of more than $165,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A narcotics detection dog sniffed out almost 7 pounds of heroin and 9 pounds of cocaine April 1, 2014, in a Ford pickup truck driven across the Nogales port of entry. The truck was driven by Andres Gamez-Garcia, 70, of Cajeme, Sonora. The drugs had a street value of more than $177,500.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at a Nogales port of entry March 30, 2014, arrested Cristian Abraham Avechuco-Romero, 19, of Tucson, after a drug-sniffing dog alerted to the presence of narcotics in Chevrolet pickup truck. Officers found 5 pounds of methamphetamine worth $81,800 in the truck’s battery compartment.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Two Arizona women were caught trying to smuggle more than a half-pound of methamphetamine across the San Luis port of entry April 1, 2014. The women, ages 32 and 33 both of Bullhead City, were passengers in a vehicle crossing the border. They were searched when a narcotics detection dog alerted to the presence of drugs in the vehicle. Both women were carrying meth within tubular objects concealed in their pelvic areas. The drugs, with a total weight of nearly 9.7 ounces, had an estimated value of more than $15,000. The 41-year-old man driving the car was released.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Two Arizona women were caught trying to smuggle more than a half-pound of methamphetamine across the San Luis port of entry April 1, 2014. The women, ages 32 and 33 both of Bullhead City, were passengers in a vehicle crossing the border. They were searched when a narcotics detection dog alerted to the presence of drugs in the vehicle. Both women were carrying meth within tubular objects concealed in their pelvic areas. The drugs, with a total weight of nearly 9.7 ounces, had an estimated value of more than $15,000. The 41-year-old man driving the car was released.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Francisco Manuel Villa-Ruiz, 34, Cananea, Sonora, was arrested April 3, 2014, for attempting to smuggle nearly 139 pounds of marijuana, worth more than $69,000, through the Port of Naco. Officers found 53 packages of pot hidden in the back seats and quarter panels of a Chevrolet pickup truck.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 19-year-old Tucson man walking across the border at the Nogales port of entry April 5, 2014, was arrested when officers found 7 pounds of methamphetamine taped to his stomach and back. The drug’s estimated value exceeded $20,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 19-year-old Tucson man walking across the border at the Nogales port of entry April 5, 2014, was arrested when officers found 7 pounds of methamphetamine taped to his stomach and back. The drug’s estimated value exceeded $20,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 21-year-old Mexican man was caught trying to cross into the U.S. at a Nogales port of entry April 5, 2014, with more than 29 pounds of methamphetamine hidden in the seats of a vehicle. The drugs had a street value of $87,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A narcotics detection dog sniffed out a dozen packages of methamphetamine hidden in a Lincoln sedan at a Nogales port of entry April 5, 2014. The car was driven by a 31-year-old Nogales, Sonora, man. The 16 pounds of meth, worth almost $49,000, was hidden in the car’s radiator.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Officers from the Mariposa commercial facility in Nogales referred a 57-year-old Nogales, Sonora, man for further inspection April 4, 2014, and found nearly 41 pounds of methamphetamine hidden in a tractor-tralor full of eggplants. The meth, which had a street value of $123,000, was hidden in the tractor-trailer’s rear differential.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 23-year-old U.S. citizen living in Sonora, Mexico man was arrested April 7, 2014, for trying to smuggle nearly two pounds of heroin across the San Luis port of entry in his shoes. A narcotics detection dog sniffed out $25,400 worth of heroin in the insoles of the man’s shoes as he tried to drive across the border.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 23-year-old U.S. citizen living in Sonora, Mexico man was arrested April 7, 2014, for trying to smuggle nearly two pounds of heroin across the San Luis port of entry in his shoes. A narcotics detection dog sniffed out $25,400 worth of heroin in the insoles of the man’s shoes as he tried to drive across the border.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Felipe Camacho, 25, of Phoenix, was arrested trying to smuggle 22 pounds methamphetamine into the U.S. April 12, 2014, at the San Luis port of entry. The meth, which had a street value of more than $65,000, was found inside the doors of a Nissan sedan after a narcotics detection dog alerted to the presence of drugs.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Felipe Camacho, 25, of Phoenix, was arrested trying to smuggle 22 pounds methamphetamine into the U.S. April 12, 2014, at the San Luis port of entry. The meth, which had a street value of more than $65,000, was found inside the doors of a Nissan sedan after a narcotics detection dog alerted to the presence of drugs.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Felipe Camacho, 25, of Phoenix, was arrested trying to smuggle 22 pounds methamphetamine into the U.S. April 12, 2014, at the San Luis port of entry. The meth, which had a street value of more than $65,000, was found inside the doors of a Nissan sedan after a narcotics detection dog alerted to the presence of drugs.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Teddy Dwayne Scamp, 51, and passenger Margaret Jean Lins, 38, both of Buckeye, were arrested April 20, 2014, for trying to smuggle 574.5 pounds of marijuana into the U.S. across the Lukeville port of entry. Scamp was driving the motor home when officers found 27 packages of pot worth an estimated $287,000 stashed throughout the vehicle.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Teddy Dwayne Scamp, 51, and passenger Margaret Jean Lins, 38, both of Buckeye, were arrested April 20, 2014, for trying to smuggle 574.5 pounds of marijuana into the U.S. across the Lukeville port of entry. Scamp was driving the motor home when officers found 27 packages of pot worth an estimated $287,000 stashed throughout the vehicle.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A Mexican citizen, Pauline Stephany Calderon-Aguirre, was taken into custody April 22, 2014, for trying to smuggle 26 pounds of heroin into the U.S. through the San Luis port of entry. A drug-sniffing dog alerted to her Ford pickup truck and an inspection turned up the $360,000 in heroin hidden in the transmission.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A Mexican citizen, Pauline Stephany Calderon-Aguirre, was taken into custody April 22, 2014, for trying to smuggle 26 pounds of heroin into the U.S. through the San Luis port of entry. A drug-sniffing dog alerted to her Ford pickup truck and an inspection turned up the $360,000 in heroin hidden in the transmission.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A Mexican citizen, Pauline Stephany Calderon-Aguirre, was taken into custody April 22, 2014, for trying to smuggle 26 pounds of heroin into the U.S. through the San Luis port of entry. A drug-sniffing dog alerted to her Ford pickup truck and an inspection turned up the $360,000 in heroin hidden in the transmission.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Juan Carlos Maduena-Penaloza, 30, of Tolleson, was arrested April 23, 2014, for attempting to smuggle nearly 21 pounds of methamphetamine into the United States. He was trying to cross into the U.S. at the San Luis port of entry when a drug sniffing dog alerted to something in Maduena-Penaloza Ford pickup truck. Officers found 20 packages of crystal methamphetamines in his gas tank. The drugs had a street value of $324,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
More than 16 pounds of heroin was found in a tractor-trailer driven by a 54-year-old Mexican at a Nogales port of entry April 24, 2014, after a narcotics detection dog sniffed it out. The heroin was hidden in the engine’s valve cover and had a street value of about $225,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A narcotics detection dog sniffed out 21 pounds of methamphetamine valued at $65,000 April 24, 2014, at a Nogales port of entry when a 30-year-old Mexican woman tried to drive the drugs into the U.S. in her Toyota sedan. The meth was hidden in the trunk.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A narcotics detection dog sniffed out 21 pounds of methamphetamine valued at $65,000 April 24, 2014, at a Nogales port of entry when a 30-year-old Mexican woman tried to drive the drugs into the U.S. in her Toyota sedan. The meth was hidden in the trunk.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Jorge Alberto Sanchez-Ruiz, 22, of Sonoyta, Sonora, Mexico, was arrested April 26, 2014, at the Lukeville port of entry trying to smuggle 29 bundles of marijuana in his Ford pickup truck. The pot weighed 658 pounds and was valued at $329,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Jorge Alberto Sanchez-Ruiz, 22, of Sonoyta, Sonora, Mexico, was arrested April 26, 2014, at the Lukeville port of entry trying to smuggle 29 bundles of marijuana in his Ford pickup truck. The pot weighed 658 pounds and was valued at $329,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
U.S. and Mexican authorities shutdown a 449-foot-long drug smuggling tunnel April 4, 2014, near the Nogales port of entry.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 17-year-old drug smuggler was busted Tuesday when she tried to cross into Arizona with a pound of methamphetamine in her underwear.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 17-year-old drug smuggler was busted Tuesday when she tried to cross into Arizona with a pound of methamphetamine in her underwear.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A traffic stop led to a pot bust March 13, 2014 in Pinal County. A detective assigned to the sheriff’s Anti-Smuggling Unit tried to make a traffic stop at about 10:30 a.m. in the unincorporated area of Stanfield. The driver of a 2003 Chevrolet Trailblazer sped away. As the detective pursued the SUV, the driver threw a bundle of marijuana weighing about 24 pounds, out of the window. The deputy continued to pursue the vehicle, which was fleeing in excess of 90 miles per hour. At one point, the deputy lost sight with the SUV and later discovered it abandoned. The driver ran from the scene and got away, leaving behind 52 bundles of marijuana, weighing a total of 1,173 pounds. It had an estimated street value of $879,750. The detective later returned to the location where the driver threw the bundle of marijuana from the vehicle and noticed a most of it was gone.
- Pinal County Sheriff's Office
A 33-year-old Nogales, Sonora, woman was arrested March 8, 2014, for trying to cross into Arizona with $207,000 worth of meth and heroin hidden in a Chrysler sedan. A drug-sniffing dog detected the drugs in the undercarriage of the car.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
More than 15 pounds of meth, worth $238,000, was found March 8, 2014, in the rocker panels of a Honda sedan at the Nogales port of entry. A narcotics dog alerted to the presence of drugs in the car that was driven by a 30-year-old woman from Hermosillo, Sonora.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 33-year-old Nogales, Sonora, woman was arrested March 8, 2014, for trying to cross into Arizona with $207,000 worth of meth and heroin hidden in a Chrysler sedan. A drug-sniffing dog detected the drugs in the undercarriage of the car.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 33-year-old Nogales, Sonora, woman was arrested March 8, 2014, for trying to cross into Arizona with $207,000 worth of meth and heroin hidden in a Chrysler sedan. A drug-sniffing dog detected the drugs in the undercarriage of the car.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Nearly 12 pounds of meth, worth an estimated $180,700 was found in a Nissan SUV March 7, 2014, after a drug-sniffing dog alerted to the vehicle’s spare tire. The Nissan was being driven by a 34-year-old Nogales, Sonora, resident who was trying to cross into the U.S.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 21-year-old Nogales, Sonora, man was arrested March 6, 2014 at the Port of Nogales for trying to smuggle nearly six pounds of methamphetamine and more than 13 pounds of heroin into the United States. A drug-sniffing dog detected the drugs hidden in a non-factory compartment in the floor between the seats of a Jeep SUV. The drugs had a street value of $267,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 21-year-old Nogales, Sonora man was arrested March 6, 2014 at the Port of Nogales for trying to smuggle nearly six pounds of methamphetamine and more than 13 pounds of heroin into the United States. A drug-sniffing dog detected the drugs hidden in a non-factory compartment in the floor between the seats of a Jeep SUV. The drugs had a street value of $267,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A drug-sniffing dog found 200 pounds of marijuana hidden throughout a Dodge SUV, including in the roof, doors and gas tank. The 65-year-old Tucson woman driving the truck trying to cross the Nogales border March 4, 2014.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A drug-sniffing dog found 200 pounds of marijuana hidden in the roof, doors and gas tank of a Dodge SUV trying to cross the Nogales border March 4, 2014. The truck was being driven by a 65-year-old Tucson woman.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 22-year-old Tucson man was arrested March 4, 2014 at the Nogales port of entry, after a narcotics-detection dog found $148,000 in marijuana hidden in a non-factory compartment under the truck’s bed.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A drug-sniffing dog found $131,000 worth of marijuana hidden in a non-factory compartment under the entire bed of a Ford pickup truck trying to cross into the U.S. at the Nogales port of entry March 4, 2014. The truck was being driven by a 53-year-old Mexican woman.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
An 18-year-old Nogales, Sonora, man was arrested March 11, 2014, at the Nogales port of entry for trying to smuggle 42 pounds of methamphetamine worth nearly $654,000 hidden in the quarter panels of a Jeep SUV.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
An 18-year-old Nogales, Sonora, man was arrested March 11, 2014, at the Nogales port of entry for trying to smuggle 42 pounds of methamphetamine worth nearly $654,000 hidden in the quarter panels of a Jeep SUV.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 43-year-old woman from Mexico was arrested March 11, 2014, for trying to smuggle 412 pounds of marijuana through the Port of Douglas. A drug-sniffing dog detected the narcotics hidden in an Isuzu SUV. The pot had a street value of nearly $206,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 43-year-old woman from Mexico was arrested March 11, 2014, for trying to smuggle 412 pounds of marijuana through the Port of Douglas. A drug-sniffing dog detected the narcotics hidden in an Isuzu SUV. The pot had a street value of nearly $206,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 43-year-old woman from Mexico was arrested March 11, 2014, for trying to smuggle 412 pounds of marijuana through the Port of Douglas. A drug-sniffing dog detected the narcotics hidden in an Isuzu SUV. The pot had a street value of nearly $206,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 43-year-old woman from Mexico was arrested March 11, 2014, for trying to smuggle 412 pounds of marijuana through the Port of Douglas. A drug-sniffing dog detected the narcotics hidden in an Isuzu SUV. The pot had a street value of nearly $206,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 25-year-old Tucson woman was arrested Feb. 27, 2014, for attempting to smuggle nearly 138 pounds of marijuana through the Port of Nogales.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 25-year-old Tucson woman was arrested Feb. 27, 2014, for attempting to smuggle nearly 138 pounds of marijuana through the Port of Nogales hidden in car seats.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 33-year-old woman from Agua Prieta, Sonora, was arrested Feb. 26, 2014, after trying to smuggle 270 pounds of marijuana through the Douglas port of entry.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 33-year-old woman from Agua Prieta, Sonora, was arrested Feb. 26, 2014, after trying to smuggle 270 pounds of marijuana through the Douglas port of entry.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 33-year-old woman from Agua Prieta, Sonora, was arrested Feb. 26, 2014, after trying to smuggle 270 pounds of marijuana through the Douglas port of entry.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
On Jan. 25, 2014, at the Interstate 19 checkpoint near Tubac, agents discovered six packages of crystal meth concealed around the waist and groin area of a man driving a minivan. The narcotics were worth more than $47,400.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
On Jan. 25, 2014, at the Interstate 19 checkpoint near Tubac, agents discovered six packages of crystal meth concealed around the waist and groin area of a man driving a minivan. The narcotics were worth more than $47,400.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
On Jan. 25, 2014, at the Interstate 19 checkpoint near Tubac, agents discovered six packages of crystal meth concealed around the waist and groin area of a man driving a minivan. The narcotics were worth more than $47,400.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
On Jan. 25, 2014, at the Interstate 19 checkpoint near Tubac, agents discovered six packages of crystal meth concealed around the waist and groin area of a man driving a minivan. The narcotics were worth more than $47,400.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 55-year-old Mexican man was arrested Feb. 12, 2014, at the Nogales port of entry after agents found nearly 400 pounds of marijuana in a tractor-trailer rig hauling aircraft parts. Agents found 22 bundles of marijuana in boxes. The pot had a street value of about $196,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 71-year-old man was arrested Feb. 11, 2014, after agents at a Nogales border crossing found six pounds of heroin hidden in a computer case. The man was trying to cross the border in a Ford SUV when he was stopped. The heroin had a street value of $80,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border agents saw tire tracks leading off road into a brush area near Marana Jan. 30, 2014, and found an abandoned Chevrolet truck with 30 bricks of marijuana in the cab and the bed of the truck. They also found 16 shotgun shells in the pickup. The pot had a street value of about $402,575.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border agents saw tire tracks leading off road into a brush area near Marana Jan. 30, 2014, and found an abandoned Chevrolet truck with 30 bricks of marijuana in the cab and the bed of the truck. They also found 16 shotgun shells in the pickup. The pot had a street value of about $402,575.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border patrol agents followed foot prints in the Santa Rosa Mountains for approximately a mile Jan. 29, 2014, before finding 10 bundles of marijuana valued at more than $255,600.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Casa Grande Border Patrol agents arrested two illegal immigrants Jan. 25, 2014, and seized more than 635 pounds of marijuana during their patrol.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Adrian Camacho-Borboa, 22, of Nogales, Sonora, was arrested Jan. 28, 2014, at the Port of Nogales for attempting to smuggle more than 31 pounds of heroin, and almost a pound each of methamphetamine and cocaine, into the United States. The drugs had a street value of nearly $300,000. The drugs were found after a narcotics detection dog sniffed them out.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Adrian Camacho-Borboa, 22, of Nogales, Sonora, was arrested Jan. 28, 2014, at the Port of Nogales for attempting to smuggle more than 31 pounds of heroin, and almost a pound each of methamphetamine and cocaine, into the United States. The drugs had a street value of nearly $300,000. The drugs were found after a narcotics detection dog sniffed them out.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Adrian Camacho-Borboa, 22, of Nogales, Sonora, was arrested Jan. 28, 2014, at the Port of Nogales for attempting to smuggle more than 31 pounds of heroin, and almost a pound each of methamphetamine and cocaine, into the United States. The drugs had a street value of nearly $300,000. The drugs were found after a narcotics detection dog sniffed them out.
A 36-year-old man from Agua Prietà, Sonora, Mexico was arrested Jan. 30, 2014, for attempting to smuggle 245 pounds of marijuana, through the Port of Douglas. A drug-sniffing dog alerted to narcotics in the man’s SUV and border officers found 143 packages of marijuana, weighing more than 245 pounds, stashed throughout the vehicle as well as the spare tire. The pot had a street value of nearly $123,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 36-year-old man from Agua Prietà, Sonora, Mexico was arrested Jan. 30, 2014, for attempting to smuggle 245 pounds of marijuana, through the Port of Douglas. A drug-sniffing dog alerted to narcotics in the man’s SUV and border officers found 143 packages of marijuana, weighing more than 245 pounds, stashed throughout the vehicle as well as the spare tire. The pot had a street value of nearly $123,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 36-year-old man from Agua Prietà, Sonora, Mexico was arrested Jan. 30, 2014, for attempting to smuggle 245 pounds of marijuana, through the Port of Douglas. A drug-sniffing dog alerted to narcotics in the man’s SUV and border officers found 143 packages of marijuana, weighing more than 245 pounds, stashed throughout the vehicle as well as the spare tire. The pot had a street value of nearly $123,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Three women were arrested Jan. 29, 2014, trying to smuggle $100,000 worth of heroin across the Nogales border.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Three women were arrested Jan. 29, 2014, trying to smuggle $100,000 worth of heroin across the Nogales border.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Three women were arrested Jan. 29, 2014, trying to smuggle $100,000 worth of heroin across the Nogales border.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Two Mexican women were arrested Dec. 14, 2013, for attempting to smuggle 41 pounds of methamphetamine, with a street value of $635,500, into the United States. They drove a 2006 Jeep Liberty SUV to the Nogales port of entry where U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers found 30 packages of meth in the vehicle’s gas tank.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Two Mexican women were arrested Dec. 14, 2013, for attempting to smuggle 41 pounds of methamphetamine, with a street value of $635,500, into the United States. They drove a 2006 Jeep Liberty SUV to the Nogales port of entry where U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers found 30 packages of meth in the vehicle’s gas tank.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Two Mexican women were arrested Dec. 14, 2013, for attempting to smuggle 41 pounds of methamphetamine, with a street value of $635,500, into the United States. They drove a 2006 Jeep Liberty SUV to the Nogales port of entry where U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers found 30 packages of meth in the vehicle’s gas tank.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A narcotics detection dog on Jan. 21, 2013, sniffed out more than half a million dollars worth of methamphetamine in the tires an SUV at the Nogales border.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A narcotics detection dog on Jan. 21, 2013, sniffed out more than half a million dollars worth of methamphetamine in the tires an SUV at the Nogales border.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A Sonora man was arrested Jan. 22, 2014, at the Nogales border trying to smuggle nearly 7,400 pounds of marijuana into the United States. The drugs had a street value of $3.7 million.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A Sonora man was arrested Jan. 22, 2014, at the Nogales border trying to smuggle nearly 7,400 pounds of marijuana into the United States. The drugs had a street value of $3.7 million.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A parakeet hidden in a camera bag was seized by U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents Jan. 16, 2014, at the Mariposa port-of-entry. A 41-year-old a California man was trying to smuggle the bird into the U.S. The bird was seized and the man was fined, which he paid on-site before being released. The bird was quarantined turned over to USDA-Veterinary Services.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A parakeet hidden in a camera bag was seized by U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents Jan. 16, 2014, at the Mariposa port-of-entry. A 41-year-old a California man was trying to smuggle the bird into the U.S. The bird was seized and the man was fined, which he paid on-site before being released. The bird was quarantined turned over to USDA-Veterinary Services.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Officers from U.S. Customs and Border Protection found more than 24 pounds of methamphetamine, worth nearly $378,000, inside the air suspension bags of a tractor-trailer hauling watermelons Jan. 20, 2014 at the Nogales port-of-entry. The driver, a 52-year-old Mexican man, was arrested.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Officers from U.S. Customs and Border Protection found more than 24 pounds of methamphetamine, worth nearly $378,000, inside the air suspension bags of a tractor-trailer hauling watermelons Jan. 20, 2014 at the Nogales port-of-entry. The driver, a 52-year-old Mexican man, was arrested.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A drug detection dog sniffed out more than 14 pounds of cocaine and nearly six pounds of methamphetamine Jan. 20, 2014, that was hidden in a Honda SUV driven by a 57-year-old Mexican man at the Mariposa Port. The drugs had a street value of more than $215,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A drug detection dog sniffed out more than 14 pounds of cocaine and nearly six pounds of methamphetamine Jan. 20, 2014, that was hidden in a Honda SUV driven by a 57-year-old Mexican man at the Mariposa Port. The drugs had a street value of more than $215,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A drug sniffing dog at the DeConcini Port Jan. 19, 2014 Sunday, officers at the Dennis DeConcini Port alerted U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents to the presence of more than 11 pounds of methamphetamine, worth more than $174,500, behind the front bumper of a Chevy sedan driven by a 48-year-old Mexican woman. The drugs had a street value of more than $174,500.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 49-year-old Mexican man was arrested Jan. 8, 2014, for attempting to smuggle marijuana through Douglas port-of-entry. A drug detection dog found 200 pounds of marijuana in five tires on a Chevy truck.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 49-year-old Mexican man was arrested Jan. 8, 2014, for attempting to smuggle marijuana through Douglas port-of-entry. A drug detection dog found 200 pounds of marijuana in five tires on a Chevy truck.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 21-year-old Phoenix man was arrested Jan. 4, 2014, after a drug detection dog at the San Luis port-of-entry sniffed out 10 packages of methamphetamine containing more than 12 pounds valued at more than $189,000 hidden in a Pontiac sedan.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 21-year-old Phoenix man was arrested Jan. 4, 2014, after a drug detection dog at the San Luis port-of-entry sniffed out 10 packages of methamphetamine containing more than 12 pounds valued at more than $189,000 hidden in a Pontiac sedan.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A drug detection dog alerted to the presence of narcotics Jan. 5, 2014, in the spare tire of a Jeep SUV driven by a 36-year-old Mexican man at the San Luis port-of-entry. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers found 10 packages filled with more than 26 pounds of cocaine worth in excess of $240,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A mask covered with chicken blood and feathers was seized at the Nogales border crossing Jan. 21, 2014.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border Patrol agents, on Dec. 4, 2013, arrested eight people accused of smuggling and six illegal immigrants and seized four ATVs and 5,000 pounds of marijuana.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border Patrol agents, on Dec. 4, 2013, arrested eight people accused of smuggling and six illegal immigrants and seized four ATVs and 5,000 pounds of marijuana.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border Patrol agents, on Dec. 4, 2013, arrested eight people accused of smuggling and six illegal immigrants and seized four ATVs and 5,000 pounds of marijuana.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A vehicle with a fake government license plate was found loaded with 86 bundles of marijuana Dec. 21, 2013, by Border Patrol agents in Nogales.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A vehicle with a fake government license plate was found Dec. 21, 2013, loaded with 86 bundles of marijuana by Border Patrol agents in Nogales.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 56-year-old man from Phoenix was stopped for further inspection of his vehicle while crossing the border on Dec. 30 and when officers opened a suitcase in the back of a Honda SUV, they found a 48-year-old woman underneath clothes, according to a U.S. Customs and Border Protection News Release. The woman is a Thai national, the release said.
- Customs and Border Protection
Officers at the Nogales Port of Entry discovered $301,000 in undeclared cash hidden in the wheel well of a vehicle being driven into Mexico by a Nogales, Sonora, woman on Jan. 5, 2014. The money, seen packaged on the left side of the well, was seized. The driver was arrested, according to Customs and Border Protection.
- Customs and Border Protection
Customs and Border Protection said officers found $108,000 in unreported cash hidden in a Ford SUV that was being driven in Mexico through the Douglas Port of Entry on Jan. 5, 2014. The driver, a U.S. resident, was arrested. The money and SUV were seized, CBP said in a news release.
- Customs and Border Protection
Border Patrol agents at the checkpoint on Interstate 19 on Dec. 16, 2013, arrested one woman and seized nearly 30 pounds of methamphetamine worth more than $460,000, according to a Customs and Border Protection news release.
- Customs and Border Protection
A 24-year-old Tucson man was arrested Dec. 11, 2013 at the Douglas port of entry when officers found more than 60 pounds of pot with an estimated street value of $30,000 in the Scion sedan he was driving.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 24-year-old Tucson man was arrested Dec. 11, 2013 at the Douglas port of entry when officers found more than 60 pounds of pot with an estimated street value of $30,000 in the Scion sedan he was driving.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 24-year-old Tucson man was arrested Dec. 11, 2013 at the Douglas port of entry when officers found more than 60 pounds of pot with an estimated street value of $30,000 in the Scion sedan he was driving.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
More than 200 pounds of pot was found in a Nissan sedan Dec. 11, 2013, that was being driven across the Douglas port of entry by a 22-year-old Mexican man. The marijuana had a street value of $102,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 32-year-old Nogales, Sonora man was arrested Dec. 12, 2013 at the Nogales port of entry after a drug sniffing dog detected pot in the melon-filled tractor-trailer he was driving. Officers found about 1,850 pounds of marijuana in the cargo area. It had a street value of $924,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 32-year-old Nogales, Sonora man was arrested Dec. 12, 2013 at the Nogales port of entry after a drug sniffing dog detected pot in the melon-filled tractor-trailer he was driving. Officers found about 1,850 pounds of marijuana in the cargo area. It had a street value of $924,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 44-year-old man from Mexico was arrested Dec. 12, 2013, after inspectors found more than 1,000 pounds of marijuana in the tractor-trailer he was driving across the San Luis port of entry. The pot had a street value of nearly $469,000. The pot was hidden in boxes concealed by palettes of scrap aluminum.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 44-year-old man from Mexico was arrested Dec. 12, 2013, after inspectors found more than 1,000 pounds of marijuana in the tractor-trailer he was driving across the San Luis port of entry. The pot had a street value of nearly $469,000. The pot was hidden in boxes concealed by palettes of scrap aluminum.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 44-year-old man from Mexico was arrested Dec. 12, 2013, after inspectors found more than 1,000 pounds of marijuana in the tractor-trailer he was driving across the San Luis port of entry. The pot had a street value of nearly $469,000. The pot was hidden in boxes concealed by palettes of scrap aluminum.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A man driving a tractor-trailer through the Nogales port of entry, was arrested Dec. 9, 2013, after a drug sniffing dog found nearly 1,900 pounds in a shipment of squash. The 40-year-old from Nogales, Sonora was arrested and the shipment of drugs with a street value of nearly $943,000, was confiscated.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A man driving a tractor-trailer through the Nogales port of entry, was arrested Dec. 9, 2013, after a drug sniffing dog found nearly 1,900 pounds in a shipment of squash. The 40-year-old from Nogales, Sonora was arrested and the shipment of drugs with a street value of nearly $943,000, was confiscated.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Dolphus Kelly Jr. of Huachuca City, was arrested Dec. 11, 2013, for attempting to smuggle 33 pounds of hard drugs through the Nogales port of entry. Kelly Jr. had 15 pounds of heroin and almost 18 pounds of methamphetamine hidden in the dashboard of the Dodge pickup truck he was driving. The drugs had a street value of more than $481,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Dolphus Kelly Jr. of Huachuca City, was arrested Dec. 11, 2013, for attempting to smuggle 33 pounds of hard drugs through the Nogales port of entry. Kelly Jr. had 15 pounds of heroin and almost 18 pounds of methamphetamine hidden in the dashboard of the Dodge pickup truck he was driving. The drugs had a street value of more than $481,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Dolphus Kelly Jr. of Huachuca City, was arrested Dec. 11, 2013, for attempting to smuggle 33 pounds of hard drugs through the Nogales port of entry. Kelly Jr. had 15 pounds of heroin and almost 18 pounds of methamphetamine hidden in the dashboard of the Dodge pickup truck he was driving. The drugs had a street value of more than $481,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 19-year-old man from Cananea, Mexico was arrested more than 104 pounds of marijuana, with a street value of more than $52,000, was found in the rear quarter panels of the Dodge SUV he was trying to drive into the U.S. Dec. 8, 2013, at the Douglas port of entry.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 19-year-old man from Cananea, Mexico was arrested more than 104 pounds of marijuana, with a street value of more than $52,000, was found in the rear quarter panels of the Dodge SUV he was trying to drive into the U.S. Dec. 8, 2013, at the Douglas port of entry.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
About $84,500 worth of marijuana, weighing 169 pounds, was found in metal boxes hidden in the tires of a GMC SUV driven across the Douglas port of entry Dec. 6, 2013, by a 32-year-old woman from Agua Prieta.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
About $84,500 worth of marijuana, weighing 169 pounds, was found in metal boxes hidden in the tires of a GMC SUV driven across the Douglas port of entry Dec. 6, 2013, by a 32-year-old woman from Agua Prieta.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
About $84,500 worth of marijuana, weighing 169 pounds, was found in metal boxes hidden in the tires of a GMC SUV driven across the Douglas port of entry Dec. 6, 2013, by a 32-year-old woman from Agua Prieta.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 55-year-old woman from Sonora, Mexico and her daughter, 23, were arrested Dec. 8, 2013, as they tried to cross into the U.S. at the Nogales port of entry after a drug sniffing dog detected narcotics in the truck they were driving. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers found almost 227 pounds of marijuana with a street value of more than $113,000 hidden in a truck bed compartment.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 55-year-old woman from Sonora, Mexico and her daughter, 23, were arrested Dec. 8, 2013, as they tried to cross into the U.S. at the Nogales port of entry after a drug sniffing dog detected narcotics in the truck they were driving. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers found almost 227 pounds of marijuana with a street value of more than $113,000 hidden in a truck bed compartment.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 37-year-old Tucson woman was arrested Dec. 6, 2013, after a narcotics detection dog alerted to the presence of drugs in the fuel tank of the GMC truck she was driving at the Nogales port of entry. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers found more than 65 pounds of marijuana with a street value of nearly $33,000 in the gas tank.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 37-year-old Tucson woman was arrested Dec. 6, 2013, after a narcotics detection dog alerted to the presence of drugs in the fuel tank of the GMC truck she was driving at the Nogales port of entry. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers found more than 65 pounds of marijuana with a street value of nearly $33,000 in the gas tank.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Cristina Bernal-Delgado, 44, of San Luis, Rio Colorado, Sonora, Mexico, was arrested Dec.1 at the Port of San Luis after a drug sniffing dog alerted to narcotics in the Ford sedan she was driving. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers discovered more than 12 pounds of heroin and more than 13 pounds of methamphetamine in the vehicle’s rocker panels. The drugs had a total street value of $372,000. The drugs and vehicle were seized. Bernal was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Cristina Bernal-Delgado, 44, of San Luis, Rio Colorado, Sonora, Mexico, was arrested Dec.1 at the Port of San Luis after a drug sniffing dog alerted to narcotics in the Ford sedan she was driving. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers discovered more than 12 pounds of heroin and more than 13 pounds of methamphetamine in the vehicle’s rocker panels. The drugs had a total street value of $372,000. The drugs and vehicle were seized. Bernal was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 33-year-old Douglas woman was arrested Nov. 22, 2013, when border officers found more than 87 pounds of marijuana, valued at nearly $44,000, inside her Nissan truck.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
More than 450 pounds of marijuana with an estimated street value of $225,000 was found Nov. 22, 2013, in an SUV driven by a 34-year-old woman from Mexico. A narcotics detection dog alerted to drugs throughout the Ford Expedition when the woman tried to cross at the Douglas port-of-entry. Border patrol agents 320 packages of pot from the SUV.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
More than 450 pounds of marijuana with an estimated street value of $225,000 was found Nov. 22, 2013, in an SUV driven by a 34-year-old woman from Mexico. A narcotics detection dog alerted to drugs throughout the Ford Expedition when the woman tried to cross at the Douglas port-of-entry. Border patrol agents 320 packages of pot from the SUV.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Fabian Salazar Gastelum, 23, of Nogales, Sonora, Mexico, was turned over to Homeland Security Nov. 24, 2013, after a drug sniffing dog alerted to the presence of narcotics in the Chevrolet sedan he was droving through the Nogales port-of-entry. In the rear quarter panels and rear fender wells of the vehicle, border patrol officers found 13 packages of cocaine weighing nearly 34 pounds and valued at nearly $307,000; 12 packages of heroin weighing more than 15 pounds and valued in excess of $208,000; and five packages of methamphetamine weighing almost six pounds with a street value of $89,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Fabian Salazar Gastelum, 23, of Nogales, Sonora, Mexico, was turned over to Homeland Security Nov. 24, 2013, after a drug sniffing dog alerted to the presence of narcotics in the Chevrolet sedan he was droving through the Nogales port-of-entry. In the rear quarter panels and rear fender wells of the vehicle, border patrol officers found 13 packages of cocaine weighing nearly 34 pounds and valued at nearly $307,000; 12 packages of heroin weighing more than 15 pounds and valued in excess of $208,000; and five packages of methamphetamine weighing almost six pounds with a street value of $89,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Javier Ruiz, 18, of Nogales, Ariz., was turned over to Homeland Security Nov. 22, 2013, after a narcotics dog sniffed out 66 packages of marijuana, with a street value of $54,000, in the gas tank of the Dodge truck he was driving. Ruiz was stopped at the Nogales port-of-entry.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Javier Ruiz, 18, of Nogales, Ariz., was turned over to Homeland Security Nov. 22, 2013, after a narcotics dog sniffed out 66 packages of marijuana, with a street value of $54,000, in the gas tank of the Dodge truck he was driving. Ruiz was stopped at the Nogales port-of-entry.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A tractor-trailer rig carrying a load of squash from Hermosillo, Sonora, was also carrying the largest load of marijuana seized on Arizona’s border with Mexico. The shipment was seized Nov. 13, 2013. The pot — 881 bundles weighing 20,375 pounds — was seized by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers working at the Mariposa commercial facility in Nogales. It had a street value of $10.1 million. The stash was discovered when driver Pedro Corona-Moreno, 32, a trucker from Hermosillo, was referred for a routine inspection of his load of produce as he was entering Arizona. When the shipment was offloaded, a drug dog alerted officers to the presence of marijuana. The tractor-trailer rig, drugs and produce were seized. Corona-Moreno was arrested and turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. The photo was taken during a press conference to announce the record-breaking bust.
- Arizona Daily Star
A tractor-trailer rig carrying a load of squash from Hermosillo, Sonora, was also carrying the largest load of marijuana seized on Arizona’s border with Mexico. The shipment was seized Nov. 13, 2013. The pot — 881 bundles weighing 20,375 pounds — was seized by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers working at the Mariposa commercial facility in Nogales. It had a street value of $10.1 million. The stash was discovered when driver Pedro Corona-Moreno, 32, a trucker from Hermosillo, was referred for a routine inspection of his load of produce as he was entering Arizona. When the shipment was offloaded, a drug dog alerted officers to the presence of marijuana. The tractor-trailer rig, drugs and produce were seized. Corona-Moreno was arrested and turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. The photo was taken during a press conference announcing the record-breaking bust.
- Arizona Daily Star
A tractor-trailer rig carrying a load of squash from Hermosillo, Sonora, was also carrying the largest load of marijuana seized on Arizona’s border with Mexico. The shipment was seized Nov. 13, 2013. The pot — 881 bundles weighing 20,375 pounds — was seized by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers working at the Mariposa commercial facility in Nogales. It had a street value of $10.1 million. The stash was discovered when driver Pedro Corona-Moreno, 32, a trucker from Hermosillo, was referred for a routine inspection of his load of produce as he was entering Arizona. When the shipment was offloaded, a drug dog alerted officers to the presence of marijuana. The tractor-trailer rig, drugs and produce were seized. Corona-Moreno was arrested and turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A tractor-trailer rig carrying a load of squash from Hermosillo, Sonora, was also carrying the largest load of marijuana seized on Arizona’s border with Mexico. The shipment was seized Nov. 13, 2013. The pot — 881 bundles weighing 20,375 pounds — was seized by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers working at the Mariposa commercial facility in Nogales. It had a street value of $10.1 million. The stash was discovered when driver Pedro Corona-Moreno, 32, a trucker from Hermosillo, was referred for a routine inspection of his load of produce as he was entering Arizona. When the shipment was offloaded, a drug dog alerted officers to the presence of marijuana. The tractor-trailer rig, drugs and produce were seized. Corona-Moreno was arrested and turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border Patrol agents arrested a U.S. resident Nov. 8, 2013, after about 80 pounds of marijuana was found in a Plymouth van at a checkpoint on Arizona 80 near Tombstone. The marijuana had a street value of about $41,000. The driver was arrested and the van and drugs were seized.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border Patrol agents arrested three Chinese nationals who were hidden in the trunk of a car at a checkpoint south of Tucson Nov. 8, 2013. Using a dog and an X-ray scanner determined that three people were being transported in the trunk of a Nissan Altima passing though the Interstate 19 checkpoint. The car was being driven by a U.S. resident. The driver was arrested and the three Chinese nationals will be returned to their home country.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border Patrol agents arrested three Chinese nationals who were hidden in the trunk of a car at a checkpoint south of Tucson Nov. 8, 2013. Using a dog and an X-ray scanner determined that three people were being transported in the trunk of a Nissan Altima passing though the Interstate 19 checkpoint. The car was being driven by a U.S. resident. The driver was arrested and the three Chinese nationals will be returned to their home country.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Two San Luis men were arrested Nov. 14, 2013, at the Port of San Luis after U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers discovered nearly 100 pounds of cocaine and heroin in separate incidents.
Rene Antonio Martinez-Romero, 48, was arrested after a narcotics detection dog alterted to the presence of drugs in the rocker panels of the frame of the Dodge van he was driving. Officers found 30 packages of cocaine more than 78 pounds with an estimated value of nearly $714,000.
In a separate stop, officers found more than 21 pounds of heroin with a street value of $289,000, in the rear seat of a Nissan sedan driven by Gerardo Atayde, 23.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Two San Luis men were arrested Nov. 14, 2013, at the Port of San Luis after U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers discovered nearly 100 pounds of cocaine and heroin in separate incidents.
Rene Antonio Martinez-Romero, 48, was arrested after a narcotics detection dog alterted to the presence of drugs in the rocker panels of the frame of the Dodge van he was driving. Officers found 30 packages of cocaine more than 78 pounds with an estimated value of nearly $714,000.
In a separate stop, officers found more than 21 pounds of heroin with a street value of $289,000, in the rear seat of a Nissan sedan driven by Gerardo Atayde, 23.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Two San Luis men were arrested Nov. 14, 2013, at the Port of San Luis after U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers discovered nearly 100 pounds of cocaine and heroin in separate incidents.
Rene Antonio Martinez-Romero, 48, was arrested after a narcotics detection dog alterted to the presence of drugs in the rocker panels of the frame of the Dodge van he was driving. Officers found 30 packages of cocaine more than 78 pounds with an estimated value of nearly $714,000.
In a separate stop, officers found more than 21 pounds of heroin with a street value of $289,000, in the rear seat of a Nissan sedan driven by Gerardo Atayde, 23.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A Tucson woman was arrested Nov. 14, 2013, at the Port of Nogales for attempting to smuggle nearly 21 pounds of heroin and methamphetamine into the United States. Cynthia Teresa Flores, 24, was arrested after a narcotics detection dog alerted to the presence of drugs behind the dashboard. Officers found three packages of heroin weighing nearly four pounds and with a street value of more than $52,000, and a dozen packages of meth weighing nearly 17 pounds and valued in excess of $262,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A Tucson woman was arrested Nov. 14, 2013, at the Port of Nogales for attempting to smuggle nearly 21 pounds of heroin and methamphetamine into the United States. Cynthia Teresa Flores, 24, was arrested after a narcotics detection dog alerted to the presence of drugs behind the dashboard. Officers found three packages of heroin weighing nearly four pounds and with a street value of more than $52,000, and a dozen packages of meth weighing nearly 17 pounds and valued in excess of $262,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A Tucson woman was arrested Nov. 14, 2013, at the Port of Nogales for attempting to smuggle nearly 21 pounds of heroin and methamphetamine into the United States. Cynthia Teresa Flores, 24, was arrested after a narcotics detection dog alerted to the presence of drugs behind the dashboard. Officers found three packages of heroin weighing nearly four pounds and with a street value of more than $52,000, and a dozen packages of meth weighing nearly 17 pounds and valued in excess of $262,000.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 21-year-old Mexican man was arrested Nov. 5, 2013, at the Port of Nogales for attempting to smuggle nearly 32 pounds of cocaine into the United States. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers found 10 packages of cocaine worth almost $287,000 after a narcotics detection dog alerted to the presence of drugs under the vehicle’s back seat and in the trunk, officers removed. The drugs and vehicle were processed for seizure. The subject was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 21-year-old Mexican man was arrested Nov. 5, 2013, at the Port of Nogales for attempting to smuggle nearly 32 pounds of cocaine into the United States. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers found 10 packages of cocaine worth almost $287,000 after a narcotics detection dog alerted to the presence of drugs under the vehicle’s back seat and in the trunk, officers removed. The drugs and vehicle were processed for seizure. The subject was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 21-year-old Mexican man was arrested Nov. 5, 2013, at the Port of Nogales for attempting to smuggle nearly 32 pounds of cocaine into the United States. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers found 10 packages of cocaine worth almost $287,000 after a narcotics detection dog alerted to the presence of drugs under the vehicle’s back seat and in the trunk, officers removed. The drugs and vehicle were processed for seizure. The subject was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 21-year-old Mexican man was arrested Nov. 5, 2013, at the Port of Nogales for attempting to smuggle nearly 32 pounds of cocaine into the United States. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers found 10 packages of cocaine worth almost $287,000 after a narcotics detection dog alerted to the presence of drugs under the vehicle’s back seat and in the trunk, officers removed. The drugs and vehicle were processed for seizure. The subject was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 24-year-old Nogales man was arrested Nov. 9, 2013, after officers found more than 13 pounds of methamphetamine, worth more than $207,000, hidden throughout a Scion sedan he was driving through the Port of Nogales. The drugs were located in the rear cargo compartments as well as in the intake vents near the front windshield. The subject was referred to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. The drugs and vehicle were processed for seizure.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 24-year-old Nogales man was arrested Nov. 9, 2013, after officers found more than 13 pounds of methamphetamine, worth more than $207,000, hidden throughout a Scion sedan he was driving through the Port of Nogales. The drugs were located in the rear cargo compartments as well as in the intake vents near the front windshield. The subject was referred to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. The drugs and vehicle were processed for seizure.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 24-year-old Nogales man was arrested Nov. 9, 2013, after officers found more than 13 pounds of methamphetamine, worth more than $207,000, hidden throughout a Scion sedan he was driving through the Port of Nogales. The drugs were located in the rear cargo compartments as well as in the intake vents near the front windshield. The subject was referred to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. The drugs and vehicle were processed for seizure.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Officers at the Port of Douglas seized nearly 187 pounds of marijuana Nov. 13, 2013, inside of a Ford van occupied by two Mexican women. Customs and Border Protection officers removed 149 packages of marijuana from throughout the interior of the vehicle; including the rear seats, quarter panels and door panels. The drugs, worth an estimated $93,000, and vehicle were seized. The subjects’ visas were cancelled and both individuals were turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Officers at the Port of Douglas seized nearly 187 pounds of marijuana Nov. 13, 2013, inside of a Ford van occupied by two Mexican women. Customs and Border Protection officers removed 149 packages of marijuana from throughout the interior of the vehicle; including the rear seats, quarter panels and door panels. The drugs, worth an estimated $93,000, and vehicle were seized. The subjects’ visas were cancelled and both individuals were turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Officers at the Port of Douglas seized nearly 187 pounds of marijuana Nov. 13, 2013, inside of a Ford van occupied by two Mexican women. Customs and Border Protection officers removed 149 packages of marijuana from throughout the interior of the vehicle; including the rear seats, quarter panels and door panels. The drugs, worth an estimated $93,000, and vehicle were seized. The subjects’ visas were cancelled and both individuals were turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A man from Mexico was arrested Thursday at the Port of Nogales for trying to smuggle nearly 32 pounds of cocaine into the United States. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers referred the 21-year-old man for an additional inspection of his Toyota sedan narcotics detection dog alerted to the presence of drugs under the vehicle’s back seat and in the trunk. Officers found 10 packages of cocaine with a street value of nearly $287,000. The drugs and vehicle were processed for seizure. The man was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A man from Mexico was arrested Thursday at the Port of Nogales for trying to smuggle nearly 32 pounds of cocaine into the United States. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers referred the 21-year-old man for an additional inspection of his Toyota sedan narcotics detection dog alerted to the presence of drugs under the vehicle’s back seat and in the trunk. Officers found 10 packages of cocaine with a street value of nearly $287,000. The drugs and vehicle were processed for seizure. The man was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A man from Mexico was arrested Thursday at the Port of Nogales for trying to smuggle nearly 32 pounds of cocaine into the United States. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers referred the 21-year-old man for an additional inspection of his Toyota sedan narcotics detection dog alerted to the presence of drugs under the vehicle’s back seat and in the trunk. Officers found 10 packages of cocaine with a street value of nearly $287,000. The drugs and vehicle were processed for seizure. The man was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A man from Mexico was arrested Thursday at the Port of Nogales for trying to smuggle nearly 32 pounds of cocaine into the United States. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers referred the 21-year-old man for an additional inspection of his Toyota sedan narcotics detection dog alerted to the presence of drugs under the vehicle’s back seat and in the trunk. Officers found 10 packages of cocaine with a street value of nearly $287,000. The drugs and vehicle were processed for seizure. The man was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A Mexican man with “trusted-traveler” status, was arrested Nov. 6, 2013, for attempting to smuggle nearly $548,000 worth of methamphetamine into the United States. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the Port of Nogales arrested Guadalupe Loaiza-Bastidas, 49, after he and his 31-year-old driver were found to be carrying more than 35 pounds of methamphetamine concealed in the rear inside panels of Loaiza’s Toyota van.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A Mexican man with “trusted-traveler” status, was arrested Nov. 6, 2013, for attempting to smuggle nearly $548,000 worth of methamphetamine into the United States. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the Port of Nogales arrested Guadalupe Loaiza-Bastidas, 49, after he and his 31-year-old driver were found to be carrying more than 35 pounds of methamphetamine concealed in the rear inside panels of Loaiza’s Toyota van.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A Mexican man with “trusted-traveler” status, was arrested Nov. 6, 2013, for attempting to smuggle nearly $548,000 worth of methamphetamine into the United States. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the Port of Nogales arrested Guadalupe Loaiza-Bastidas, 49, after he and his 31-year-old driver were found to be carrying more than 35 pounds of methamphetamine concealed in the rear inside panels of Loaiza’s Toyota van.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers referred Ramon Alejandro Jimenez-Espinoza, 21, of Mexico was arrested Oct. 25, 2013, when U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers found 24 pounds of heroin in the Hyundai sedan he was driving at the Nogales port of entry. A drug dog alerted to the presence of narcotics in the bumpers and officers found 16 packages of heroin with a street value of almost $326,000.
- Photo courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers referred Ramon Alejandro Jimenez-Espinoza, 21, of Mexico was arrested Oct. 25, 2013, when U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers found 24 pounds of heroin in the Hyundai sedan he was driving at the Nogales port of entry. A drug dog alerted to the presence of narcotics in the bumpers and officers found 16 packages of heroin with a street value of almost $326,000.
- Photo courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers referred Ramon Alejandro Jimenez-Espinoza, 21, of Mexico was arrested Oct. 25, 2013, when U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers found 24 pounds of heroin in the Hyundai sedan he was driving at the Nogales port of entry. A drug dog alerted to the presence of narcotics in the bumpers and officers found 16 packages of heroin with a street value of almost $326,000.
- Photo courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A Tucson woman was arrested Oct. 23, 2013, at the Port of Nogales for attempting to smuggle nearly 27 pounds of heroin into the United States. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers referred Amy Renee Valdes, 36, for an additional inspection of her Chevrolet sedan at the Dennis DeConcini Port of Entry. After a CBP narcotics detection canine alerted to the presence of drugs behind the vehicle’s back seat, officers removed 18 packages of heroin worth close to $363,000. The drugs and vehicle were processed for seizure. Valdes was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- Photo courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A Tucson woman was arrested Oct. 23, 2013, at the Port of Nogales for attempting to smuggle nearly 27 pounds of heroin into the United States. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers referred Amy Renee Valdes, 36, for an additional inspection of her Chevrolet sedan at the Dennis DeConcini Port of Entry. After a CBP narcotics detection canine alerted to the presence of drugs behind the vehicle’s back seat, officers removed 18 packages of heroin worth close to $363,000. The drugs and vehicle were processed for seizure. Valdes was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- Photo courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Officers at the Port of Douglas seized nearly 314 pounds of marijuana Oct. 24, 2013, after a Customs and Border Protection narcotics detection canine alerted to a Suzuki SUV- being driven by a Mexican woman. Officers removed 199 packages of marijuana from throughout the interior and exterior of the vehicle. The drugs, worth an estimated $157,000, and vehicle were seized. The woman was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- Photo courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Officers at the Port of Douglas seized nearly 314 pounds of marijuana Oct. 24, 2013, after a Customs and Border Protection narcotics detection canine alerted to a Suzuki SUV- being driven by a Mexican woman. Officers removed 199 packages of marijuana from throughout the interior and exterior of the vehicle. The drugs, worth an estimated $157,000, and vehicle were seized. The woman was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- Photo courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Officers at the Port of Douglas seized nearly 314 pounds of marijuana Oct. 24, 2013, after a Customs and Border Protection narcotics detection canine alerted to a Suzuki SUV- being driven by a Mexican woman. Officers removed 199 packages of marijuana from throughout the interior and exterior of the vehicle. The drugs, worth an estimated $157,000, and vehicle were seized. The woman was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- Photo courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 37-year-old Tucson man was arrested Oct. 23, 2013, after officers found nearly 384 pounds of marijuana in a shipment of corn tortillas. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers referred the driver of a Ford van for further inspection when he attempted to enter through the Nogales Cargo facility. After a CBP narcotics detection canine confirmed an officer’s suspicion, 44 packages of marijuana were removed from within the shipment of tortillas. The man and drugs, worth nearly $192,000, were turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. The vehicle was seized.
- Photo courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 37-year-old Tucson man was arrested Oct. 23, 2013, after officers found nearly 384 pounds of marijuana in a shipment of corn tortillas. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers referred the driver of a Ford van for further inspection when he attempted to enter through the Nogales Cargo facility. After a CBP narcotics detection canine confirmed an officer’s suspicion, 44 packages of marijuana were removed from within the shipment of tortillas. The man and drugs, worth nearly $192,000, were turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. The vehicle was seized.
- Photo courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 37-year-old Tucson man was arrested Oct. 23, 2013, after officers found nearly 384 pounds of marijuana in a shipment of corn tortillas. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers referred the driver of a Ford van for further inspection when he attempted to enter through the Nogales Cargo facility. After a CBP narcotics detection canine confirmed an officer’s suspicion, 44 packages of marijuana were removed from within the shipment of tortillas. The man and drugs, worth nearly $192,000, were turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. The vehicle was seized.
- Photo courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the Port of Douglas referred a 31-year-old Mexican woman for further inspection of the Nissan SUV she was driving after narcotics detection dog alerted to drugs in the vehicle Oct. 20, 2013. Officers found 228 pounds of marijuana, with a street value of nearly $114,000 hidden within the gas tank and the tires.
- Photo courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Officers arrested a 36-year-old Mexican woman at the Port of Douglas after a drug dog detected narcotics in her Ford sedan Oct. 20, 2013. Officers removed 133 packages of marijuana, weighing more than 205 pounds and valued at nearly $103,000 from throughout the car. Drugs were found inside the dashboard, doors, seats, floor, bumper and trunk.
- Photo courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Officers arrested a 36-year-old Mexican woman at the Port of Douglas after a drug dog detected narcotics in her Ford sedan Oct. 20, 2013. Officers removed 133 packages of marijuana, weighing more than 205 pounds and valued at nearly $103,000 from throughout the car. Drugs were found inside the dashboard, doors, seats, floor, bumper and trunk.
- Photo courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Officers arrested a 36-year-old Mexican woman at the Port of Douglas after a drug dog detected narcotics in her Ford sedan Oct. 20, 2013. Officers removed 133 packages of marijuana, weighing more than 205 pounds and valued at nearly $103,000 from throughout the car. Drugs were found inside the dashboard, doors, seats, floor, bumper and trunk.
- Photo courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Officers arrested a 36-year-old Mexican woman at the Port of Douglas after a drug dog detected narcotics in her Ford sedan Oct. 20, 2013. Officers removed 133 packages of marijuana, weighing more than 205 pounds and valued at nearly $103,000 from throughout the car. Drugs were found inside the dashboard, doors, seats, floor, bumper and trunk.
- Photo courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers found 117 packages of marijuana with a street value of more than $70,000 concealed in the roof of the camper shell on a Ford pickup truck at the Port of Douglas Oct. 22, 2013. The driver, a 45-year-old man from Agua Prieta, Sonora, was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers found 117 packages of marijuana with a street value of more than $70,000 concealed in the roof of the camper shell on a Ford pickup truck at the Port of Douglas Oct. 22, 2013. The driver, a 45-year-old man from Agua Prieta, Sonora, was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the Port of Douglas referred a 31-year-old Mexican woman for further inspection of the Nissan SUV she was driving after narcotics detection dog alerted to drugs in the vehicle Oct. 20, 2013. Officers found 228 pounds of marijuana, with a street value of nearly $114,000 hidden within the gas tank and the tires.
- Photo courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A Customs and Border Protection drug-sniffing dog at the Port of Nogales alerted to marijuana within the floor of a Chevrolet sedan Sept. 21, 2013. As a result, officers arrested a 42-year-old Tucson woman and seized 22 packages of marijuana weighing more than 102 pounds. The weed had an estimated street value in excess of $46,000.
- Photo courtesy of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security
A Customs and Border Protection drug-sniffing dog at the Port of Nogales alerted to marijuana within the floor of a Chevrolet sedan Sept. 21, 2013. As a result, officers arrested a 42-year-old Tucson woman and seized 22 packages of marijuana weighing more than 102 pounds. The weed had an estimated street value in excess of $46,000.
- Photo courtesy of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security
A 22-year-old Douglas man trying to cross the Mariposa port-of-entry Sept. 24, 2013, was arrested after a drug sniffing dog detected marijuana in his vehicle. Customs and Border Protection officers found about 224 pounds of marijuana worth more than $100,000 hidden in the diesel fuel tank of his vehicle.
- Photo courtesy of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security
A 31-year-old Mexican man was arrested Sept. 21, 2013, when he attempted to enter the United States with more than 31 pounds of methamphetamine in his vehicle. The drugs were located within the doors of his Nissan sedan. The drugs, valued at nearly $485,000, were detected by a Customs and Border Protection narcotics dog at the Port of Nogales.
- Photo courtesy of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security
A 31-year-old Mexican man was arrested Sept. 21, 2013, when he attempted to enter the United States with more than 31 pounds of methamphetamine in his vehicle. The drugs were located within the doors of his Nissan sedan. The drugs, valued at nearly $485,000, were detected by a Customs and Border Protection narcotics dog at the Port of Nogales.
- Photo courtesy of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security
Nearly 55 pounds of methamphetamine, with an estimated street value of more than $846,000, was found Sept. 21, 2013, by Customs and Border Protection officers at the Port of Nogales. It was in the bumper of a Chevrolet sedan being driven by a 24-year-old Mexican man.
- Photo courtesy of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security
A 36-year-old Tucson woman, who was also a SENTRI trusted traveler, was arrested Sept. 20, 2013, after Customs and Border Protection officers at the Port of Nogales found nearly 17 pounds of cocaine and more than a pound of methamphetamine within compartments inside of a Ford SUV. The combined value of the seizure was more than $171,000.
- Photo courtesy of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security
A 36-year-old Tucson woman, who was also a SENTRI trusted traveler, was arrested Sept. 20, 2013, after Customs and Border Protection officers at the Port of Nogales found nearly 17 pounds of cocaine and more than a pound of methamphetamine within compartments inside of a Ford SUV. The combined value of the seizure was more than $171,000.
- Photo courtesy of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security
A 33-year-old woman from Sells was arrested Sept. 25, 2013, on charges she attempted to smuggle more than 180 pounds of marijuana into the United States through the Port of Naco. Customs and Border Protection officers apprehended the woman after a CBP drug dog alerted to the presence of drugs in the tires of her Dodge pickup. Officers found packages of marijuana in the tires valued in excess of $81,000.
- Photo courtesy of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security
Nearly 23 pounds of cocaine with an estimated street value of $207,200, was found in an SUV at the San Luis port-of-entry Sept. 19, 2013.
- Photo courtesy of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security
A 24-year-old woman from Mexico was arrested at the border Sept. 19, 2013, trying to smuggle more than $200,000 worth of cocaine into Arizona. Customs and Border Protection officers at the San Luis port-of-entry found nearly 23 pounds of cocaine stashed behind a speaker box in the woman’s Lincoln SUV after a narcotics dog detected drugs in the vehicle.
- Photo courtesy of US Department of Homeland Security
U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents found a red Hummer H2 and two other vehicles Sept. 17, 2013, in the desert west of Sells covered with a camouflage-patterned tarp and concealed by dense brush. All three were packed with 4,311 pounds of marijuana. The payload from all three vehicles has an estimated street value of $2,155,500.
- Photo courtesy of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection
U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents found a dark-color Dodge truck and two other vehicles Sept. 17, 2013, in the desert west of Sells covered with a camouflage-patterned tarp and concealed by dense brush. All three were packed with 4,311 pounds of marijuana. The payload from all three vehicles has an estimated street value of $2,155,500.
- Photo courtesy of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection
U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents found a silver Chevy truck and two other vehicles Sept. 17, 2013, in the desert west of Sells covered with a camouflage-patterned tarp and concealed by dense brush. All three were packed with 4,311 pounds of marijuana. The payload from all three vehicles has an estimated street value of $2,155,500.
- Photo courtesy of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border Protection officers referred a 28-year-old Mexican woman for additional inspection of her Dodge van Sept. 15, 2013, after a narcotics dog alerted to the presence of drugs. Officers found 127 packages of marijuana in the van’s interior roof space, side door, dashboard and bumper. The drugs weighed nearly 258 pounds and had a street value of more than $116,000.
- Photo courtesy of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security
Border Protection officers referred a 28-year-old Mexican woman for additional inspection of her Dodge van Sept. 15, 2013, after a narcotics dog alerted to the presence of drugs. Officers found 127 packages of marijuana in the van’s interior roof space, side door, dashboard and bumper. The drugs weighed nearly 258 pounds and had a street value of more than $116,000.
- Photo courtesy of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security
On Sept. 14, 2013, Border Protection officers arrested a 20-year-old Douglas man at the Douglas port-of-entry after a Border Patrol dog alerted to drugs throughout his Chrysler coupe. Officers removed 166 packages of marijuana, weighing more than 236 pounds and valued at more than $106,000, from throughout the vehicle. Drugs were found inside the dashboard, doors, back seats, floor, and the trunk.
- Photo courtesy of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security
On Sept. 14, 2013, Border Protection officers arrested a 20-year-old Douglas man at the Douglas port-of-entry after a Border Patrol dog alerted to drugs throughout his Chrysler coupe. Officers removed 166 packages of marijuana, weighing more than 236 pounds and valued at more than $106,000, from throughout the vehicle. Drugs were found inside the dashboard, doors, back seats, floor, and the trunk.
- Photo courtesy of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security
On Sept. 14, 2013, Border Protection officers arrested a 20-year-old Douglas man at the Douglas port-of-entry after a Border Patrol dog alerted to drugs throughout his Chrysler coupe. Officers removed 166 packages of marijuana, weighing more than 236 pounds and valued at more than $106,000, from throughout the vehicle. Drugs were found inside the dashboard, doors, back seats, floor, and the trunk.
- Photo courtesy of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security
On Sept. 14, 2013, Border Protection officers arrested a 20-year-old Douglas man at the Douglas port-of-entry after a Border Patrol dog alerted to drugs throughout his Chrysler coupe. Officers removed 166 packages of marijuana, weighing more than 236 pounds and valued at more than $106,000, from throughout the vehicle. Drugs were found inside the dashboard, doors, back seats, floor, and the trunk.
- Photo courtesy of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security
An 18-year-old Mexican man was arrested Sept. 13, 2013, at the Douglas port-of-entry after a narcotics dog detected drugs in his Dodge pickup truck. Officers found 25 packages of marijuana weighing 176 pounds hidden underneath the hood and within the vehicles’ spare tire. The street value was estimated at $88,000.
- Photo courtesy of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security
An 18-year-old Mexican man was arrested Sept. 13, 2013, at the Douglas port-of-entry after a narcotics dog detected drugs in his Dodge pickup truck. Officers found 25 packages of marijuana weighing 176 pounds hidden underneath the hood and within the vehicles’ spare tire. The street value was estimated at $88,000.
- Photo courtesy of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security
A 57-year-old Mexican man was arrested Sept. 13, 2013 at the Nogales port-of-entry after a narcotic detection dog alerted to the presence of drugs within the rear and spare tires. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers found 22 packages of meth weighing 34 pounds and worth more than $536,000.
- Photo courtesy of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security
A 24-year-old Mexican man and his 45-year-old father, also of Mexico, were arrested after they tried to cross the border at the San Luis port-of-entry Sept. 12, 2013, with 13 packages of cocaine weighing 34 pounds in the front fenders of the Jeep SUV they were driving. The drugs had a street value of more than $310,000.
- Photo courtesy of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security
A 51-year-old Mexican man was stopped Sept. 11, 2013, at the San Luis port-of-entry for an additional inspection after a narcotics dog detected the presence of drugs in his Ford SUV. Border Protection officers found 13 packages of methamphetamine from the vehicles’ transfer case. The drugs weighed nearly 14 pounds and have an estimated value of more than $216,500.
- Photo courtesy of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security
A 42-year-old man and a 52-year-old woman, both from Nogales, Sonora, were arrested Sept. 12, 2013, at the Nogales port-of-entry after Border Protection officers found 10 pounds of cocaine divided into six packages hidden in the heater core of the Dodge pickup truck they were attempting to drive across the border. The stash had an estimated street value of $93,000.
- Photo courtesy of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security
A 42-year-old man and a 52-year-old woman, both from Nogales, Sonora, were arrested Sept. 12, 2013, at the Nogales port-of-entry after Border Protection officers found 10 pounds of cocaine divided into six packages hidden in the heater core of the Dodge pickup truck they were attempting to drive across the border. The stash had an estimated street value of $93,000.
- Photo courtesy of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security
A Tucson woman was arrested Aug. 21 at the Nogales border crossing after officers say they found cocaine and methamphetamine in the car she was driving.
Elizabeth Borquez, 32, was picked for additional inspection at the border crossing and a drug dog alerted to her Honda sedan, a news release from U.S. Customs and Border Protection said.
Officers found about 15 pounds of cocaine and more than 4 pounds of methamphetamine hidden under the front left fender. The drugs had a combined value of about $202,000.
In an unrelated bust earlier the same day, a 40-year-old Mexican woman was apprehended at the border
after officers found 36 packages of marijuana — about 72 pounds — hidden in the gas tank of the Chevy pickup truck she was driving. The pot had an estimated street value of $32,600, according to the news release.
The women were referred to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. The drugs and vehicles were seized.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 26-year-old Mexican woman was arrested Aug. 17, after border officers in Naco say they found heroin in her backpack, officials say.
Maria Cecilia Ruiz-Garcia was walking across the border into Arizona when she was selected for additional inspection, a news release from U.S. Customs and Border Protection said.
Border officers found nearly six pounds of heroin in a secret compartment of a roll-away backpack she had. The heroin had an estimated street value of about $74,000.
Ruiz-Garcia was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Three people were arrested Aug. 14 at the Douglas border crossing in two separate marijuana trafficking incidents, officials say.
In the first case, two 17-year-old girls were picked for inspection after a drug dog alerted to drugs in the Audi sedan they were driving, according to a news release from U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
Officers found 21 packages of marijuana, weighing 33 pounds, hidden inside the vehicle’s rear bumper and back seats. The pot had an estimated street value of about $17,000.
Later, officers arrested a 25-year-old Douglas man after a drug dog alerted to his Chevrolet coupe. Officers found 134 packages of marijuana, weighing more than 195 pounds, hidden throughout the vehicle. Drugs were found inside the front bumper, quarter panels, back seats, speaker box and the trunk. The pot had an estimated street value of nearly $88,000, the news release said.
All three people were turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. The drugs and vehicles were seized.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Diana Salazar, 23, a U.S. citizen living in San Luis, Rio Colorado, Sonora, was arrested after border officers say she tried to smuggle more than 26 pounds of cocaine through the Port of San Luis.
Salazar was referred for a secondary vehicle inspection July 28, and a narcotics detection canine alerted officers to the front fenders of her Saturn SUV. Officers found 11 packages of cocaine with a total weight of just over 26 pounds, U.S. Customs and Border Protection said in a news release.
The drugs, valued at more than $240,000, and vehicle were seized. Salazar was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Librado Delgado Garcia, 62, a Mexican national, was arrested July 27, after border officers say he tried to smuggle meth and heroin through the Mariposa Port of Entry in Nogales.
The 2002 Dodge pickup truck Garcia was driving was selected for additional inspection and a drug dog alerted to the presence of drugs, a U.S. Customs and Border Protection news release says.
Officers say they found nearly 34 pounds of heroin and 29 pounds of methamphetamine. The drugs had a combined value of more than $880,000.
All drugs and the vehicle were seized. He was referred to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Macario Angulo-Petris, 31, of San Luis, Rio Colorado, Sonora, was arrested Aug. 8, after border officers say he tried to smuggle more than 13 pounds of heroin through the Port of San Luis.
A drug dog alerted to the presence of drugs under the Nissan SUV being driven by Angulo-Petris and officers found seven packages of the drug.
The heroin, worth about $178,000, and vehicle were seized. Angulo-Petris was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 26-year-old Tucson man was arrested Aug. 8 after border officers say he tried to smuggle about 13 pounds of methamphetamine and nearly three pounds of cocaine through the at the Port of Nogales.
After a drug dog alerted to the presence of drugs under the center hump of the Honda coupe he was driving, officers say they found two packages of cocaine and 12 packages of methamphetamine, a U.S. Customs and Border Protection news release says.
Combined, the drugs had an estimated value of $225,000.
The drugs and vehicle were processed for seizure. The unidentified man was was referred to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 40-year-old Mexican man and an 18-year-old Tucson woman were arrested Aug. 8, in connection with separate attempts to smuggle drugs through the Port of Douglas, officials said.
Jorge Enrique Diaz-Lopez was arrested after a drug dog alerted to the back seat of the Nissan pickup truck he was driving. Officers say they found eight packages of heroin weighing a total of 18 pounds. The heroin was valued at $244,147.
The unidentified woman was arrested that night when officers said they found 137 packages of marijuana hidden throughout the Lincoln sedan she was driving.
The marijuana, weighing about 147 pounds, had an estimated street value of $66,290, according to a U.S. Customs and Border Protection news release.
Diaz and the Tucson woman were turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. The drugs and vehicles were processed for seizure.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Juan Ramon Luna, 39, of Wellton, is accused of trying to smuggle more than 11 pounds of meth through the Port of San Luis.
On Aug. 2, the Chevrolet sedan Luna was driving was picked for inspection and and a drug dog alerted to the presence of drugs, a U.S. Customs and Border Protection release says.
Border officers say they found 11 packages of methamphetamine valued at $177,320 from the vehicle’s rocker panels.
The drugs and vehicle were seized. Luna was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A Mexican man was was arrested Aug. 7, at the Port of Nogales after border officers say he tried to smuggle nearly 65 pounds of cocaine into Arizona.
The Chevrolet sedan being driven by Gaston Delacruz Arriaga-Barrigan, 61, of Hermosillo, Sonora, was picked for additional inspection as he drove across the border. A drug dog alerted to a headlight and officers uncovered 27 packages of cocaine, according to a news release from U.S. Customs and Border Inspection.
The cocaine had an estimated street value of about $591,000.
The drugs and vehicle were processed for seizure. Arriaga was referred to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border officers in Douglas arrested two people on suspicion of smuggling marijuana in two separate incidents Aug.6, officials say.
In the first incident a 47-year-old Douglas woman had the van she was driving inspected after a drug dog alerted to it at the border crossing. Officers found packages of marijuana — some 363 pounds — throughout the vehicle and within the spare tire, U.S. Customs and Border Protection said in a news release.
The pot had an estimated street value of more than $163,000.
Later, officers arrested a 39-year-old man from Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico after a drug dog alerted to a false compartment behind the back seat of a Chevrolet pickup truck. The compartment had 33 packages of marijuana weighing more than 111 pounds. It’s estimated value was more than $50,000, the release said.
Both people were turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. The drugs and vehicles were seized.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
An Arizona woman was arrested Aug. 5 at the Port of San Luis after border officers say they found her carrying nearly three pounds of methamphetamine hidden in her purse and on her body.
Adriana Palencia-Rodriguez, 44, a Mexican national living in the border community of Somerton, was chosen for additional inspection when a drug dog alerted to the Saturn SUV she was driving, according to a U.S. Customs and Border Protection news release. Officers say they found 2.75 pounds packages of meth in her purse, under each breast and in her groin area. The estimated street value was $43,000.
The drugs and vehicle were seized. Palencia was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A Nogales, Ariz., man who was part of a program that allowed for quicker border crossings was arrested July 24, for trying to smuggle a woman into the United States in the trunk of his car, officials said.
Juan Carlos Chavez, 27, was arrested at the Nogales Port of Entry. He had "trusted-traveler" status with the Secure Electronic Network for Traveler's Rapid Inspection - or SENTRI program, according to a news release from Customs and Border Protection.
Chavez was trying to cross into the U.S. when he was sent for an additional inspection after he was unable to open his car trunk. When officers opened the trunk, they found a 34-year-old Mexican woman inside, the agency said.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border officers in Nogales reported several drug seizures over the weekend beginning Aug. 2.
Heriberto Balvastro-Parra, 34, a Mexican man living in Rio Rico, was arrested Friday after a drug dog alerted to the radiator of the Ford SUV he was driving, according to a news release from U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
Officers removed seven packages of cocaine with a total weight of more than 18 pounds. The drugs are valued at more than $165,000.
The next day officers referred Phoenix resident Benny Sarmiento, 51, for additional inspection of his Dodge van. With the help of a drug dog, officers found nearly 40 pounds of cocaine in the gas tank. The drugs are valued at more than $362,000.
And on Sunday officers arrested Alexis Ivonne Aguilar, 21, of Rio Rico, after a drug dog alerted officers to more than four pounds of heroin inside Aguilar’s suitcase. The drugs are valued at nearly $59,000.
All three men were referred to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. The drugs and vehicles were processed for seizure.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A man and woman were apprehended at an Arizona border crossing July 23, with about 10 pounds of methamphetamine taped to their bodies, officials say.
Melissa Lopez Delgado, 22, and Briayan Efrain B. Ramirez-Garcia, 20, both of Somerton, were crossing the border at San Luis in a Ford sedan when officers stopped them for an additional inspection, a news release from U.S. Customs and Border Protection says.
Delgado had packages of meth wrapped around her thighs, while Ramirez had packages wrapped around his waist, thighs and calves, the agency said.
The methamphetamine had an estimated street value of $157,000.
The drugs and vehicle were seized. Delgado and Ramirez were turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Four Phoenix area residents were arrested for attempting to smuggle more than $52,000 worth of marijuana through the Douglas port of entry.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers July 19, sent a 27-year-old Phoenix woman for an additional inspection of her Chevrolet truck. Officers searching the vehicle found 77 pounds of marijuana hidden in the quarter panels.
On July 20, officers arrested a Phoenix man and his two female passengers after a CBP dog alerted to the back seat of a Chevrolet sedan containing 27 packages of marijuana weighing nearly 28 pounds.
All four people were turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. The drugs and vehicles were seized.
- Photos courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A California woman was arrested July 20, for trying to smuggle $100,000 in cash into Mexico in a laundry detergent box, officials said.
Customs and Border Protection officers at the Dennis DeConcini Port in Nogales were conducting outbound inspections and selected a Honda sedan, driven by Blanca Gabriela Medina, 29, of El Monte, Calif., for an additional inspection.
Officers searched the vehicle and found 10 packages of cash hidden in a box of Gain detergent, the agency said in a news release.
The vehicle and cash were processed for seizure. Medina was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- Photo courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
From July 14 to July 19, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the Port of Douglas seized more than 814 pounds of marijuana worth nearly $394,000 in separate incidents, officials said.
In two seizures July 17, 370 pounds of pot was seized. Border officers first referred a 23-year-old woman — a U.S. citizen living in Agua Prieta, Sonora, Mexico — for a secondary inspection of her Chevrolet SUV. During the search officers noticed anomalies its tires and gas tank, finding more than 292 pounds of marijuana, worth approximately $146,000, the agency said in a news release.
A short time later, officers referred a 22-year-old Mexican man for additional inspection of his Ford pickup truck. A drug dog alerted to the vehicle and officers found 45 packages of marijuana from the front fenders, doors, gas tank and tailgate. The drugs, weighing nearly 78 pounds, had an estimated value of nearly $39,000.
Both people were turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. The drugs and vehicles were seized.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Felipe De Jesus Gomez, 22, a U.S. citizen living in San Luis, Rio Colorado, Sonora, Mexico, was arrested July 12 after border officers say they found a quarter-pound of heroin strapped to his thighs.
Gomez was walking across the San Luis border crossing when a drug dog alerted officers. They found found the drugs worth an estimated $24,000, according to a news release from U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
The drugs were seized and Gomez was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- Photos courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Alba L. Siqueiros-Bustamante, 45, of San Luis, Rio Colorado, Sonora, Mexico, was arrested July 11, at the town’s border crossing after officers say she tried to smuggle more than 36 pounds of cocaine into Arizona. A drug dog alerted to the Pontiac sedan she was driving and officers found 15 packages of cocaine in the rear quarter panels. according to a U.S. Customs and Border Protection news release.
The drugs, valued at $331,000, and vehicle were seized. Siqueiros was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- Photos courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Three Arizonans were arrested in separate drug-related incidents over the weekend at the Nogales border crossing.
On July 12, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers say they referred Judy Adilene Aguirre, 22, of Chandler, for an additional inspection of her Ford SUV and officers found 14 packages of crystal methamphetamine worth $227,788, U.S. Customs and Border Protection said in a news release.
Only July 14, officers referred Joaquin Vicente Lopez, 61, of Nogales, for further inspection of his Honda sedan. A drug dog alerted to the front bumper area where officers found 14 packages of meth worth $225,060.
Later the same day, a 34-year-old Fort Mohave woman was arrested after officer found nine packages of meth in the gas tank of the Chevrolet SUV she was driving. The meth’s estimated street value was $171,182.
The drugs and vehicles were processed for seizure. The three people were referred to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, according to the news release.
- Photos courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 57-year-old Douglas man was arrested July 14, after border officers say he tried to smuggle $95,000 in marijuana into Arizona.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers arrested the man after a drug dog alerted officers to 37 packages of marijuana within four tires and a spare of his Ford truck, according to an agency news release.
The nearly 190 pounds of drugs and vehicle were processed for seizure. The man was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- Photos courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Philip Daniel Copas. a 55-year-old Arizona man was arrested July 14 at the Lukeville border crossing after officers say he tried to smuggle more than 102 pounds of marijuana across the border.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers selected Copas for a secondary inspection of the Chevrolet van he was driving and officers found 63 bundles of marijuana, valued at a combined $51,000. It was hidden throughout the vehicle and in the spare tire, an agency news release says.
Copas was referred to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. The drugs and vehicle were seized.
- Photos courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Two Tucson teens — an 18-year-old man and a 14-year-old Mexican boy living here — were arrested July 15 after border officers in Douglas say they pair tried to smuggle more than $114,000 worth of marijuana into Arizona.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers referred a Chevrolet pickup truck for an additional inspection and with the help of a drug dog found 42 packages of marijuana — about 255 pounds — in the undercarriage of the truck.
Both teens were turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. The drugs and vehicle were seized.
- Photo courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A Mexican man was arrested July 15 after border officers at the San Luis crossing said he tried to smuggle more than 12 pounds of methamphetamine into Arizona.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers referred Victor Alfonso Payan-Beltran, 29, of San Luis, Rio Colorado, Sonora, Mexico, for inspection of his Nissan sedan. A drug dog alerted to the vehicle and officers found 12 packages of meth valued at more than $192,000 hidden in the bumper area of the car, according to a news release from the agency.
The drugs and vehicle were seized. Payan was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Armando Gonzalez Barajas, of Rio Rico, was arrested July 15 at the Port of Nogales after border officers say he tried to smuggle nearly 27 pounds of cocaine into Arizona.
Officers sent Barajas, 33, for an additional inspection of his Chrysler sedan, according to a U.S. Customs and Border Protection release. After a drug dog alerted to the presence of drugs in the vehicle’s dashboard, officers removed 10 packages of cocaine worth more than $243,000.
The drugs and vehicle were processed for seizure. Barajas was referred to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- Photos courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A traffic stop July 16, 2013, by a Pinal County sheriff’s officer resulted in two arrests and the seizure of more about 220 pounds of marijuana with a street value of more than $165,000. Felipe Gonzalez-Tempura, 19, (left) and Daniel Jupa-Fino, 21, (right) both of Mexico, were booked into the Pinal County jail for possession of marijuana, possession of marijuana for sale and transportation of marijuana. Daniel has already been deported 11 times in the last three years for illegal entry into the United States. Gonzales-Tempura was injured when he climbed over a barbed wire fence as he tried to flee from officers.
- Photo courtesy of the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office
Thousands of rounds of ammunition headed for Mexico and arrested an Avondale man July 11 at the Douglas border crossing.
Louis Armando Collins-Avila, 41, of Avondale, was picked for an inspection of his SUV, according to an Associated Press news story. Border officers say they found 3,000 rounds of ammunition often used in assault weapons along with 2,000 rounds of 9 mm ammo and 1,000 rounds of .38-caliber ammunition.
The vehicle and ammunition were processed for seizure. Collins-Avila was taken into custody and turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations for further investigation.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Victor Manuel Navarro, of Somerton, was arrested July 10 for allegedly trying to smuggle more than 38 pounds of methamphetamine into southern Arizona.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the Port of San Luis say Navarro, 37, was referred for an inspection of his pickup truck.
A narcotics detection dog assisted the officers in locating a non-factory compartment inside the fuel tank, containing 30 packages of methamphetamine.
Authorities say the meth was valued at more than $595,000.
The vehicle was seized and Navarro was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
Authorities didn’t immediately know Thursday if Navarro had an attorney yet for his case.
- Photo courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A Phoenix woman is facing drug charges after border officers in Nogales say they found three pounds of cocaine taped to her butt.
Dora Anna Gutierrez, 39, was arrested at the Morley pedestrian gate July 9, after a drug dog alerted to the presence of drugs on her body, a news release from U.S. Customs and Border Protection says.
The three pounds of cocaine was valued at just over $24,000.
In a separate incident that day, Vanessa Elizabeth Palacios-Cortez, 34, of Nogales, Son., was arrested after officers say they found 14 packages of methamphetamine inside the front seats of a Buick sedan she was driving.
The methamphetamine weighed nearly 24 pounds and had an estimated value of nearly $365,000, the agency said in the release.
The drugs and car were seized and both women were referred to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Arizona border officers arrested four people over the weekend on suspicion of smuggling drugs in unrelated incidents at the Douglas border crossing, officials say.
In the first incident on July 4, a 62-year-old Mexican woman living in Douglas was selected for additional inspection of her Ford SUV. Officers found 15 packages of marijuana, weighing 53 pounds in a spare tire. The pot had an estimated street value of $27,000, according to a news release from U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
On July 5, a 38-year-old Douglas woman for an additional inspection of the Ford SUV she was driving. When officers searched the vehicle, they found 14 packages of marijuana with a combined weight of nearly 21 pounds in the back seats. The pot’s estimated street value was $10,000.
On July 6, border officers arrested a 37-year-old Mexican man after finding a combined 24 bundles of marijuana the tires of his Ford truck. The drugs weighed more than 125 pounds and were valued at nearly $63,000.
On July 7, a 32-year-old Mexican woman from Willcox was arrested after border officers found more than 25 pounds of marijuana in a tire of the Ford SUV she was driving. The marijuana had an estimated street value of $13,000.
Combined the four seizures involved about 224 pounds of marijuana.
All four people were turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. The drugs and vehicles were seized.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Four people were arrested in separate drug-related incidents Friday at the Nogales border crossing.
A 23-year-old Nogales, Ariz., man was arrested on July 5, after an inspection of his Ford SUV revealed 10 packages of cocaine, weighing nearly 26 pounds hidden in the back seats. The marijuana was valued at $233,000.
Later that day a 22-year-old Mexican woman was arrested after border officers say they found nearly 13 pounds of heroin under the back seats of her vehicle. The heroin was valued at $174,000.
Also that day, border officers say they found about 1.5 pounds of methamphetamine hidden in a 16-year-old boy’s groin area as the teen walked into Arizona through the Morley gate entrance. The meth was valued at $23,000.
In the fourth incident that day, a a 28-year-old Mexican woman was arrested after border officers say they found nearly five pounds of methamphetamine in a cooler under the front passenger seat of the Ford sedan she was driving. The methamphetamine was valued at more than $75,000.
All four people were referred to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
An Arizona man man and a Mexican woman were arrested at the Port of Nogales July 4, after border officers say they tried to smuggle cocaine and heroin in two separate incidents.
In the first incident, a 23-year-old, Nogales, Ariz. man was pulled aside at the Dennis DeConcini port of entry. Officers found about 10 packages of cocaine weighing a total of about 26 pounds, according to a news release from U.S. Customs and Border Protection. The cocaine was valued at at $233,000.
A couple of hours later, a 22-year-old woman from Sonora, was referred for further inspection at the same port. Officers with the assistance of a narcotic detection dog found nearly 13 pounds of heroin concealed under the backseat of her Nissan sedan she was driving, The heroin was valued at about $198,000.
In both cases, the drugs and vehicles were processed for seizure and both people were turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Two Mexican nationals were arrested in separate weekend incidents for trying to smuggle more than $1.6 million in unreported U.S. currency into Mexico through Nogales ports of entry. On June 9, Customs and Border Protection officers conducting outbound inspections at the Dennis DeConcini Port referred Cosme Barcelo-Quijada, 56, a legal permanent resident alien who resides in Yuma, for further inspection. During a search of Barcelo’s Toyota truck, a CBP dog detected currency hidden inside the dashboard and roof. The unreported cash totaled about $1.66 million. The money was seized.
On June 8, officers at the Mariposa Port of Entry referred Jose Luis Verastica-Munoz, 34, of Nogales, Sonora, for further inspection of his Toyota sedan prior to heading into Mexico. After a CBP dog alerted to the presence of hidden currency, officers searched Verastica’s person and vehicle and found unreported cash from his waistband and the vehicle’s dashboard. The vehicle and $14,000 cash were seized.
Barcelo and Verastica were turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
- Photos courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Three people were arrested at the San Luis post of entry over the last weekend in June in separate drug-smuggling cases, officials say,
In the first case, a 22-year-old Wellton, Ariz., woman crossing into Arizona June 28 in a Nissan pickup truck was searched after a drug dog alerted to her vehicle. Border officers found about 14 pounds of heroin hidden in the vehicle, according to a news release from U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
The drugs were valued at $184,000.
A short time earlier on Friday, officers referred a 17-year-old boy from San Luis, Ariz., was searched as he tried to walk into Arizona. Border officers say the teen had about three pounds of heroin taped to his thighs. The heroin was valued at about $36,000.
In the third incident June 29, a Mexican woman living in Winterhaven, Calif., was driving an Oldsmobile sedan into Arizona when drugs dogs alerted on the car’s back seats. Officers say they found about 27 pounds of methamphetamine in the seats. The meth was valued at about $421,000.
In all three cases the drugs and vehicles were seized.
The three people were turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A doctor surgically removed a 1-pound package of methamphetamine from a Yuma woman's pelvic area after border officials she tried to smuggle the drugs into Arizona from Mexico.
Claudia Ibarra, 31, was taken into custody June 25, after she was pulled aside for questioning at the San Luis port of entry as she tried to walk into Arizona.
Ibarra, a U.S. citizen, was searched and then taken to a nearby medical facility, where the doctor found and removed the drug package.
The methamphetamine had been wrapped in black tape and a condom and inserted into Ibarra's body.
Ibarra was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 19-year-old Douglas man was arrested June 26, after border officers say they found more than 250 pounds of marijuana in the Chevrolet pickup truck he was driving.
The teen was pulled over for questioning after a drug dog alerted to the presence of drugs in the pickup. Officers found 37 packages of marijuana with an estimated street value of about $127,000, a U.S. Customs and Border Protection news release says.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A Rio Rico man was arrested June 26 on suspicion of trying to smuggle $50,000 into Mexico through the Nogales port hidden inside a McDonald's take-out bag.
Rene Becerra-Portillo Jr., 22, was stopped for further questioning, and federal agents found the unreported currency in a bag he was carrying, according to a U.S. Customs and Border Protection news release. Becerra-Portillo was dressed in a fast-food restaurant uniform.
The cash was seized, and Becerra-Portilo was turned over to federal authorities.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Two Mexican men are accused of possessing nearly 2,500 pounds of marijuana and three firearms in a Rio Rico stash house. Jose Luis Dominguez de la Rosa, 46, of Santa Cruz, Sonora and Paul Chavez-Portillo, 25, of Los Mochis, Sinaloa, made their initial appearance in Santa Cruz County court June 18, on state felony drug and weapons charges, a news release said.
The Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office got a tip Tuesday that a house was being used as a staging point for smuggled drugs.
High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area investigators arrested Dominguez de la Rosa and Chavez-Portillo Wednesday after they tried to run off when officers tried to question them outside the house.
Inside the home, task force members found 2,499 pounds of marijuana stacked in bales and weapons, the release said.
The case is still under investigation and is being prosecuted by the Santa Cruz County Attorney’s Office.
- U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
A Mexican man is in custody for allegedly trying to smuggle nearly $236,000 in undeclared cash out of southern Arizona, federal authorities say.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the Douglas port were conducting outbound inspections June 19, when they referred Abelardo Acosta-Bustamante, 44, of Agua Prieta, for further inspection of his pickup truck.
During the search, officers say they found unreported currency inside a spare tire. The vehicle and cash were processed for seizure.
He was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, authorities say.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
More than the peppers made a shipment of jalapeños recently intercepted by border officer at Nogales hot. About 2,300 pounds of marijuana were found inside a tractor-trailer entering Arizona June 7, according to Customs and Border Protection officials. The 99 bundles of pot hidden among the peppers was worth $1.6 million. The semi-truck driver, a 27-year-old man from Nogales, Sonora whose name was not made public, was arrested and turned over to federal authorities.
The shipment of marijuana, jalapeños and the tractor-trailer were seized, the release said.
- Photo courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border officers found $378,000 of methamphetamine hidden in the doors of an SUV being driven into Arizona on June 3, officials say.
A drug dog alerted to the Ford at the Nogales border crossing and officers found 16 packages — about 24 pounds in total — of methamphetamine hidden in each of the vehicle’s four doors, a news release from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement says.
The men — 26 and 29 years old — are U.S. citizens. They were referred to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, the release said.
The drugs and vehicle were processed for seizure.
- U.S. Customs and Border Enforcement
Two 16-year-old boys from Agua Prieta, Sonora were arrested in separate incidents June 1, after border agents in Douglas found marijuana in the vehicles the teens were driving, officials say.
In the first case, border officers found 15 packages of marijuana hidden throughout a Chevrolet pickup truck. The marijuana weighed a total of 241 pounds and was valued at about $120,000.
A short time later a teen driving a Ford sedan was pulled aside for an additional inspection. Officers found 74 packages of marijuana weighing a told of about 67 pounds. The marijuana was valued at about $33,000.
Both teens were turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations and the vehicles were seized.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A Sonora man was arrested May 17 at the Nogales border crossing after officers say he tried to smuggle $106,000 into Mexico through the Dennis DeCononcini port of entry.
Gamaliel Gonzales De Dios, 54, of Nayarit, Mexico told U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers he had $1,000 as he was entering the Nogales port, according to an agency news release. Officers instead found him carrying $1,893 and an additional $105,000 was found hidden in 23 packets inside the walls a cooler.
The cash was processed for seizure and Gonzales De Dios was referred to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, the release said.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
More than $1 million worth of marijuana hidden in a shipment of charcoal was seized at a Nogales port of entry May 17, officials said. A tractor-trailer rig coming through the Mariposa Commercial Facility was x-rayed by Customs and Border Protection officers who found more than 2,000 pounds of marijuana hidden among bags of charcoal. The 44-year-old driver of the rig, a Mexican national, was arrested and turned over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
- Photos courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border officers at the Lukeville crossing made a big bust May 6, taking down a smuggler in a “queso” cheese trafficking.
During questioning the van’s driver fessed up to carrying a load — some five keys of cheese.
Instead of 11 pounds, however, border agriculture inspectors uncovered about 223 pounds of cheese hidden throughout the van, according to a news release from U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
“The concealed, unpasteurized ruminant cheese was seized for not meeting import requirements” the release says.
The news release did not provide a value estimate for the cheese. The unidentified man was cut loose with a fine.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border officers found more than 30 pounds of methamphetamine hidden in the rear bumper of a car been driven across the Nogales border crossing Sunday, officials say.
A drug dog at the Mariposa border crossing alerted officers to a sedan being driven by Miguel Angel Osuna-Rojo, 40, of Mexico, according to a news release from U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
Officers pulled 33 packages of the drug from the bumper. The estimated street value was $512,000, the release said.
Osuna was referred to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- Photos courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A Sonora man was arrested this week at the Mariposa commercial border crossing in Nogales when border officer say they found 39 pounds of cocaine in the car he was driving.
Jose Fermin Arrellano-Guzman, 38, of Nogales, Sonora, was driving into Arizona May 9, when his Chevrolet SUV was selected for additional inspection, a news release from U.S. Customs and Border Protection says.
A drug dog alerted to the vehicle’s center console. Officers found 15 packages of cocaine worth about $356,000.
The cocaine and vehicle were seized. Arrellano was referred to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- Photos courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 47-year-old Sonora man was arrested May 7, after more than 22 pounds of methamphetamine was found in the car he was driving into Arizona through the San Luis border crossing.
Border officers referred Rodolfo Huerta Ramos, of San Luis, Rio Colorado, Sonora, for an inspection of his Chevrolet sedan after a drug dog alerted to the presence of drugs inside of the vehicle, a news release from U.S. Customs and Border Protection says.
An x-ray inspection confirmed the contraband. Officers located 22 packages of crystal meth inside the rear quarter panels, the release said.
The drugs and vehicle were seized. Huerta was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- Photo courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 35-year-old Tucson man was arrested Tuesday after border officers say he tried to cross into Arizona with heroin wrapped around his waist and a small package of the drug tucked into his bellybutton.
Calvin C. Howard III was crossing through the Morley pedestrian gate when officers suspected he had drugs hidden under his clothes, according to a U.S. Customs and Border Protection news release.
Howard tried to run back into Mexico and struggled with border officers before being taken into custody, the release said.
Officers found about two pounds of heroin worth an estimated $30,000. Howard was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- Photo courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border officers at the Mariposa Port of Entry in Nogales found 5.6 pounds of methamphetamine while inspecting a tractor trailer, officials say.
The drugs were found May 6 by an x-ray machine used at the border crossing for commercial traffic. The meth was hidden in a spare automotive battery compartment, according to a U.S. Customs and Border Protection news release.
The meth is valued at about $87,000. The driver, who has a border crossing card, was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- Photo courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Two Mexican men were arrested at the Lukeville border crossing carrying $205,000 in undeclared cash, officials say.
Border officers were inspecting a 2000 Toyota sedan May 6, when they found 22 bundles of cash in the car’s panels, according to a news release from U.S. Customs and Border Protection. The cash and vehicle were seized.
Laura Reyna, 33, and Ruperto Garcia, 33, were referred to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- Photo courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border officers checking shuttle van passengers found three people with heroin taped to their body in three separate incidents April 30, officials say.
In the first two incidents, Border Patrol agents working the Interstate 19 checkpoint south of Tucson searched teens, both 17 years old, after a drug dog alerted on them. The teens were U.S. citizens and were turned over to the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Department, U.S. Customs and Border Protection said in a news release.
In the third incident, a Mexican woman riding a shuttle was arrested under similar circumstances.
The combined weight of the intercepted heroin was 9.5 pounds and its estimated street value was about $100,000, the release said.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 24-year-old woman was arrested Friday after border officers found 144 packages of marijuana hidden in the Dodge sedan she was driving into Douglas from Mexico, officials say.
Mayra Delores Martinez, a U.S. citizen living in Agua Prieta, Sonora, was pulled over for an additional inspection at the Douglas Port of Entry after a drug dog alerted to her car, U.S. Customs and Border Protection said in a news release.
Officers discovered about 200 pounds of marijuana hidden throughout the car. The value of the pot was estimated at $100,000.
The car was seized and Martinez was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Some 1,700 pounds of marijuana, multiple two-way radios and four ATVs were seized last week in joint agency operations that focus on smuggling groups operating in southern Arizona’s west desert, border officials said in a news release.
On Sunday, officers and Border Patrol agents of the West Desert Task Force found two ATVs, six radios and several batteries and a repeater southwest of Casa Grande. No arrests were made.
Two days earlier, Border Patrol agents from the Ajo and Casa Grande Station assigned to the task force found 43 bales of abandoned marijuana and two ATVs near the Tohono O'odham village of Cocklebur. The pot, weighing 954 pounds, was turned over to the Drug Enforcement Administration.
And last Thursday members of the task force found an abandoned vehicle and 780 pounds of marijuana south of Vekol Valley, on the west end of Pinal County.
The task force is comprised of Border Patrol agents, the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office and Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- Photos courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A Sonora man was arrested Sunday after border officers say they found $951,000 worth of methamphetamine hidden in his car.
Lucio Leonardo Valle-Bustamante, 37, of Nogales, Sonora was driving a Mercury sedan through the Mariposa Port of Entry when a drug dog alerted officers the the presence of drugs, a news release from U.S. Customs and Border Protection says.
Officers found 48 packages weighing a total of about 60 pounds hidden throughout the vehicle.
In a separate incident Saturday night at the Dennis DeConcini Port pf Entry, Loribeth M. Torres, 34, of Tucson, was arrested as she tried to walk into Arizona.
A drug dog helped officers find about a pound of heroin hidden in Torres’ clothes. It had an estimated street value of about $17,000, the agency says.
Valle and Torres were referred to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- Photos courtesy of U. S. Customs and Border Patrol
Two people trying to smuggle drugs inside their underwear were arrested by Border patrol agents this week in separate incidents.
On Wednesday afternoon agents say they found a pound of methamphetamine inside the underpants of an 18-year-old U.S. citizen who was riding in a border shuttle van stopped for an inspection at the Border Patrol checkpoint on Interstate 19 near Amado.
On Thursday night a 23-year-old U.S. citizen was arrested at the Dennis DeConcini Port of Entry in Nogales after officers say they found four pounds of heroin in her bra.
The combined estimated street value of the narcotics is $70,000.
- Photos courtesy of U.S. Border Patrol
Two people were arrested over two days in April at the Lukeville border crossing in unrelated drug-smuggling attempts.
In the first incident, Arturo Calvillo-Calvillo, 37, a Mexican national living in Phoenix,was pulled aside for an additional inspection of the Chrysler sedan he was driving. Officers said they found 127 bricks of marijuana weighing nearly 100 pounds in the car. The estimated street value is nearly $50,000.
The drugs and vehicle were processed for seizure. Calvillo was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
In the second incident, an inspection of a Ford SUV driven by Maria Teresa Gerra, 37, of Tucson, revealed 49 packages of marijuana in an ice chest and spare tire. Gerra, her vehicle and more than 76 pounds of marijuana, worth about $38,000, were turned over to Pima County Sheriff’s deputies, U.S. Customs and Border Protection said in a news release.
- Photos courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Nearly 13 pounds of cocaine hidden in luggage was seized this month by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the Nogales Ports of Entry.
Jose Luis Gonzalez Murillo, 33, of Nogales, Sonora, Mexico, was driving a Volkswagen sedan in to Arizona through the Mariposa border crossing when his vehicle was pulled aside for an additional inspection.
Officers found five packages of cocaine in a pair of overnight bags. The drugs, worth an estimated $118,000, and vehicle were processed for seizure. Murillo was referred to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- Photos courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Four teenage girls were arrested for allegedly trying to smuggle heroin into southern Arizona on a commercial shuttle from Mexico, federal authorities said.
Tucson Sector Border Patrol agents working at the Interstate 19 checkpoint south of Amado in April took the girls into custody Monday. U.S. customs officials said Thursday that one of the girls is 17 and the other three are age 15, The Associated Press reported.
All four girls live in Nogales, Sonora in Mexico, but two are U.S. citizens. Their names weren’t being released because they are juveniles, CBP officials said.
The girls were apprehended after agents at the checkpoint referred a commercial shuttle from Mexico for inspection. When a 15-year-old passenger behaved nervously during questioning, agents searched her bags and reported finding bundles of heroin strapped to her body.
CBP officials said the other girls also had heroin strapped to the front of their bodies and tucked under the waistbands of their underwear.
They said the nearly eight pounds of heroin had an estimated street value of $90,000.
The teens have been turned over to the Santa Cruz County sheriff’s office.
CBP officials said in a statement that “smuggling operations are becoming more desperate and are willing to use every avenue they can to successfully move their product, even if it means exploiting juveniles.”
- Photos courtesy of U.S. Border Patrol
Border Patrol agents made several large marijuana seizures over the weekend in Southern Arizona.
On Friday night, agents discovered 34 bundles of marijuana that had been abandoned near the community of Pisinimo on the Tohono O’odham Reservation, west of Tucson.
The drugs weighed 1,768 pounds and had a street value of about $800,000, according to a news release from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
On Saturday, a CBP helicopter crew observed three smugglers transporting what looked to be drug bundles near Growler Valley Road, southwest of Ajo.
When the smugglers saw the CBP helicopter they abandoned the ATVs. Agents on ground recovered 25 bundles of marijuana from the ATVs, weighing a total of about 1,100 pounds. The street value of the drugs was about $555,000. The smugglers got away.
Two of the ATVs were seized, the third had been reported stolen out of Pinal County.
All the marijuana was turned over to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.
- Photo courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 34-year-old Mexican national from Nogales, Sonora, was arrested April 16, 2013, for attempting to smuggle $90,000 in unreported U.S. currency into Mexico through the Dennis DeConcini Port in Nogales, Ariz. Customs and Border Protection officers conducting inspections of vehicles heading into Mexico selected a Ford truck driven by Cesar Olea Vazquez, for further inspection. A drug dog alerted the officers to the presence of contraband and upon further inspection officers found the currency underneath the front seat, a news release from the agency said. The vehicle and cash were seized; Vazquez was arrested.
- Photo courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A teen from Agua Prieta, Sonora was arrested Sunday after border officers say they found about 269 pounds of marijuana hidden in a van he was driving across the border into Douglas.
A drug dog alerted to the presence of drugs in a Chrysler van being driven by the 17-year-old, U.S. Customs and Border Protection said in a news release. They found 246 packages of marijuana throughout the van. The drugs and vehicle were processed for seizure.
The teen was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Enforcement
A Mexican man is accused of trying to smuggle nearly 80 fraudulent credit cards out of southern Arizona, federal authorities say.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers were conducting an inspection of a tourist bus at the Dennis DeConcini Port in Nogales.
They selected 23-year-old Leonardo Daniel Robles Castro of Hermosillo, Sonora, for further inspection.
CBP officers say they found and seized two packages containing a total of 79 counterfeit credit cards along with a fraudulent driver’s license.
Robles was arrested and referred to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, authorities say.
- U.S. Customs and Border Enforcement
Border officers say they found nearly $11,000 stuffed into the shoes of a Phoenix man trying to walk into Mexico at the Lukeville port of entry.
The 22-year-old man was arrested Wednesday when U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers searched him and found $10,744 stuffed into his sneakers. The cash was seized and the man arrested and turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 22-year-old Douglas woman was arrested over the weekend after border agents say they found 196 packages of marijuana in the car she was driving into Arizona. A drug dog alerted officers to the marijuana which was hidden in the rear bumper area of the car as well as inside a spare tire. The more than 200 pounds of pot had an estimated street value of about $105,000.
The drugs and car were seized. The woman was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A Mexican man was arrested Sunday for attempting to smuggle about
$175,000 in unreported U.S. currency into Mexico through the Dennis
DeConcini Port in Nogales, officials said. Samir Alexander Lara-Ambriz, 29, of Nogales, Sonora, was driving a Mercedes sedan when U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers doing inspections of vehicles heading into Mexico found 14 packages of U.S. currency hidden in the car.
Lara-Ambriz was arrested. The money and the car were seized.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Authorities say they found 15 pounds of marijuana in a hidden compartment on an SUV that was pulled over on Interstate 10 near Casa Grande. The Associated Press reported that the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office said Alejandro Ortiz, the 22-year-old driver of the vehicle, was booked on suspicion of marijuana possession and transportation of marijuana after Friday’s traffic stop. Officials say he was pulled over for having an excessively dark window tint and having no insurance and later raised suspicions by acting nervously.
A police dog eventually found the hidden compartment.
Authorities say Ortiz’s wife and 12-day-old child were in the vehicle, but she wasn't charged with a crime.
- Photos courtesy of Pinal County Sheriff's Department
Two Mexican women were arrested in separate incidents this week when border of officers in Nogales said they tried to smuggle nearly $62,000 combined.
In the first incident, a 26-year-old woman from the state of Sinaloa was walking into Mexico from Arizona when she was pull aside for a search when it appeared she was hiding something under her clothes. Officers found nearly $50,000 on the woman — $20,000 under her clothes, $13,400 in her shoes, $5,600 in pair of pants she was carrying and $10,979 in her purse, according to a news release from U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
Two hours later a 43-year-old woman from Nogales, Sonora was found with $11,361 in her purse. She told border officers the money was from the sale of narcotics and that she had been paid to take the money into Mexico.
The money in each case was seized and the women were arrested on suspicion of smuggling bulk cash.
- Photos courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
The Pinal County Sheriff’s Office and the West Desert Task Force discovered a stash house in Cockleburr Village on the Tohono O'odham Nation March 31, 2013. The raid resulted in the discovery of 10 individuals hiding in a shed with 567 pounds of marijuana valued at $425,000.
- Photo courtesy of the Pinal County Sheriff's Office
A Nogales, Sonora woman arrested for trying to smuggle money into Mexico
Nancy Melina Lopez-Martinez, 36, was apprehended as she made her way through the Mariposa port of entry, a news release said.
the cash was found on Lopez-Martinez when agents searched her Dodge sedan and noticed she appeared to be hiding something under her clothes, the release said.
Lopez-Martinez, the vehicle and cash were turned over to state and local authorities for further processing.
Perla Trevizo
- Photo courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Border agents used to intercepting massive loads of drugs and piles of money busted a woman with unusual contraband — chicharrones.
The pork treats were found wrapped in a towel and stuffed inside a cereal box Monday as the woman tried to drive across the Mariposa Port of Entry in Nogales, U.S. Customs and Border Protection said in a news release.
The woman had told officers she had nothing to declare, but an agriculture canine sniffed out the concealed meat.
The pork was destroyed and the woman was fined.
- Photo courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Two people were arrested Tuesday in separate incidents at the Dennis DeConcini Port of Entry for trying to smuggle about $304,000 worth of marijuana into the United States, a federal official said.
In the first incident, Silvester Padilla Romero, 42, of Tucson, was arrested after a drug dog alerted officers to marijuana hidden in Romero’s Chevrolet truck, said Edith Serrano, a Customs and Border Protection spokeswoman.
More than 545 pounds of marijuana was found in the truck’s back panels, and a toolbox, said Serrano. The marijuana was wrapped in 110 packages, and officers also found 11 loose bundles, she said. It’s estimated value was nearly $273,000.
In the second incident, Tasha Smith, 29, of Mesa, was arrested after officers found 16 packages of marijuana inside a spare tire in her Dodge SUV, Serrano said. The drugs weighed about 62 pounds and were valued at nearly $31,000, she said.
Both the vehicles and drugs were seized, and Romero and Smith are facing drug smuggling charges, Serrano said.
- Photos courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Ricardo A. Martinez, 34, was charged in federal court with importation of a controlled substance and possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute after he tried last weekend, to drive a car loaded with 13 pounds of methamphetamine into the U.S. from Mexico at the San Luis port of entry. Martinez told Customs and Border Protection agents “he was surprised that drugs had been discovered in his sedan.”
- Photo courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Oliver Cordova Santoyo, 26, of Nogales, Sonora, was arrested March 24, 2013, and faces prosecution on drug charges after U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents at the Dennis DeConcini Port in Nogales found more than 12 pounds of meth in the floorboard between the seats of his Chevrolet truck. Agents found the 10 packets of crystal meth, worth $194,000, after a CBP narcotics detection canine alerted to the presence of drugs.
- Photo courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 54-year-old Mexican woman was arrested Wednesday after U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the Naco Port of Entry said they found about 150 pounds of assorted drugs.
During a search of the Ford pickup truck Emilia Reyes-Balderrama was driving officers say they found nine pounds of heroin valued at an estimated $126,000; nearly 80 pounds of cocaine worth more than $725,000; and about 64 pounds of methamphetamine valued at nearly $987,000.
Combined, officers seized more than $1.8 million in illegal drugs.
The drugs and vehicle were seized. Reyes was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A 46-year-old Phoenix man was apprehended Monday at the San Luis border crossing after agents say they found nearly 42 pounds hidden in his Ford pickup truck. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers and a drug dog found 16 packages of cocaine with an estimated street value of about $378,000, throughout the Ford pickup driven by Martin De La Torre Dominguez. The drugs and vehicle were seized. De La Torre was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
- Photo courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Norberto De La Vega, 59, of California, was arrested after a traffic stop revealed he was hauling 1,243 pounds of marijuana hidden in a load of squash in his tractor-trailer. The marijuana has an estimated street value of nearly $925,000. De La Vega was placed under arrest and faces an array of drug offense charges.
- Photo courtesy of the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers assigned to the Nogales Ports of Entry seized more than $4.4 million in narcotics in two days in March 2013. Combined, the seizures more than four tons. The driver of a tractor-trailer was arrested at the Nogales Commercial Facility when he tried to enter the US with more than three tons of pot in containers labeled as vacuum pumps and lamp holders. Officers found 6,219 pounds of pot worth more than $3.1 million. A day earlier, on March 12, the driver of a tractor-trailer was arrested after officers found more than a ton of pot, worth more than $1 million, in a shipment of bell peppers. In an unrelated incident March 13, officers at the Mariposa Port arrested Gilberto Vasquez Govea, 31, of Nogales, Sonora, Mexico, for attempting to smuggle nearly 17 pounds of methamphetamine worth an estimated $263,252. Officers found the drugs under the rear seat of his Chevrolet SUV.
- Photo courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A Mexican man was arrested March 12, 2013 at the Nogales Commercial Facility for attempting to smuggle more than a ton of marijuana into the United States in crates of bell peppers. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers referred the tractor-trailer for an additional inspection. After an anomaly was discovered using a commercial x-ray system, a CBP narcotics detection canine alerted to the presence of drugs co-mingled within a shipment of bell peppers. A further search led to the discovery of 280 packages of marijuana worth slightly more than $1,068,000. The drugs and tractor-trailer were processed for seizure.
- Photo courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
An ultra-light aircraft carrying 253 pounds of marijuana that was captured in December, 2008 in the Tucson area. It is one of a growing number of aircraft being used to smuggle drugs into the United States. According to U.S. government statistics, there were 228 known aircraft incursion along the U.S.-Mexico border in 2010.
- Photo courtesy of U.S. Immigration Customs Enforcement
An 18-year-old Mexican woman was arrested Feb. 28, 2013, after border agents in Nogales say she tried to walk into Arizona with heroin duct-taped to her midriff.
- Photos courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
A decades-old pattern in drug smuggling is changing in Southern Arizona as backpackers start hauling meth and other hard drugs through remote desert areas.
Until recently, the pattern for smuggling drugs in Southern Arizona was clear-cut: Smugglers hauled marijuana in backpacks through the desert while smugglers at ports of entry hid meth, heroin, cocaine, fentanyl and marijuana in vehicles or under their clothes.
Now the pattern is shifting as Border Patrol agents catch more backpackers hauling meth through the desert, according to federal law enforcement officials and records at U.S. District Court in Tucson.
The shift comes amid a yearslong decline in marijuana smuggling along Arizona’s border with Mexico, as well as recent travel restrictions related to the coronavirus that cut down on the legitimate traffic that allows smugglers to sneak contraband through ports of entry. The shift also reinforces the need for a 30-foot-tall border wall, federal officials say.
“For a very long time, the drug that came through between ports of entry was almost entirely marijuana,” said Scott Brown, special agent in charge of the Phoenix office of Homeland Security Investigations, which handles drug-smuggling investigations at the border.
For roughly three decades, busts of hard drugs hauled by backpackers were “exceedingly rare,” Brown said. But in the last few months, they have seen a “marked increase” in hard drugs, particularly meth, being backpacked through the open desert areas in Arizona.
Shift in tactics
Roy Villareal, the chief patrol agent at the Border Patrol’s Tucson Sector, has drawn attention to the shift toward backpacking meth over the past few months.
“Historically drug smugglers rarely packed hard narcotics through remote areas, but recently Border Patrol agents are finding more backpacks like this one — filled with 13 kilos of meth and heroin,” Villareal said in a July 17 tweet alongside a photo of cellophane-wrapped bundles seized a night earlier in the Growler Valley west of Ajo.
In a series of tweets from late May to July, Villareal pointed to agents finding 10 pounds of meth in a backpack dropped by a man as he fled back to Mexico near Nogales; an “eagle-eyed” agent spotting two bottles of liquid meth hidden alongside a dirt road west of Ajo; and agents tracking a group in a rugged desert pass southeast of Ajo where they seized 60 pounds of meth. In late May, agents found an abandoned backpack south of Three Points that contained small bundles of heroin, marijuana and fentanyl.
The seizure was “the third significant meth seizure in three weeks to exceed 60 pounds and be found in a remote mountainous area,” according to a June 12 news release from Customs and Border Protection.
The Star found a handful of criminal complaints filed recently in meth backpacking cases at Tucson’s federal court, far fewer than the incidents mentioned in Villareal’s tweets and CBP news releases. As Villareal noted, some of the smuggling attempts end with meth abandoned in the desert, meaning no arrests were made. Other prosecutions may be delayed until federal court officials in Tucson determine proceedings can resume safely during the coronavirus pandemic.
Backpacks full of meth
In a June 8 bust, agents were patrolling near the village of Santa Cruz on the Tohono O’odham Nation when a Border Patrol camera picked up four people walking nearby with large camouflage backpacks, according to a criminal complaint. With the help of a Border Patrol helicopter, the agents found four backpacks with three smaller packs tied to them halfway up a mountainside. The packs contained about 145 pounds of meth.
They found five men hiding in a rocky crevasse about 50 yards from the backpacks. The men said they were from Honduras and believed they were hauling marijuana to avoid having to pay smuggling fees for crossing the border, according to the complaint. One man said they were recruited in Sonoyta, the Mexican border town directly south of Lukeville about 150 miles southwest of Tucson. They carried the packs for about three hours before they were arrested.
On May 30, agents working a few miles north of the border on the Tohono O’odham Nation arrested a Mexican man they found hiding under a tree about 200 yards from three backpacks containing about 60 pounds of meth, according to a criminal complaint. The man told agents he left the state of Veracuz knowing he would smuggle drugs across the border. Smugglers gave him two options: carry the meth in exchange for $1,000 or carry the meth in exchange for $200 and permission from the cartel to stay in the United States illegally.
One of the main reasons behind the shift in smuggling patterns is that criminal organizations need to make up the money they lost due to a drop in demand for marijuana, partly as a result of states loosening regulations, Border Patrol Agent Joseph Curran said.
“These criminal organizations are going to do what puts money in their pockets,” Curran said.
Drastic growth in meth seizures
Meth seizures at checkpoints, in the desert and on highways in the Tucson Sector have grown drastically since 2018, Curran said, rising from 900 pounds in fiscal 2018 to 2,700 pounds in fiscal 2019. Agents seized 1,500 pounds of meth from October to June.
Legal medical marijuana sales have skyrocketed in Arizona, at the same time as seizures of illicit marijuana at the border have plummeted, according to records from the Arizona Department of Health Services and CBP. Dispensaries in Arizona sold nearly 166,000 pounds of legal marijuana in 2019. That same year, Border Patrol agents in the Tucson and Yuma sectors seized about 62,500 pounds, a steep decline from the roughly 760,000 pounds they seized in 2016.
Brown pointed to a combination of factors, including the drop in marijuana smuggling as the legal marijuana industry expands in the United States.
One factor is the fact that travel restrictions at ports of entry during the pandemic lessened the number of legitimate travelers, allowing customs officers to inspect a higher percentage of vehicles and pedestrians, Brown said. He noted that ports of entry still see numerous meth smuggling attempts.
Another factor is that meth is “amazingly cheap,” with the wholesale price comparable to that of marijuana, Brown said. The mechanics of smuggling through the desert also lend themselves to smuggling small packages of meth rather than bulky bales of marijuana.
The shift in smuggling patterns comes as 57 miles of new 30-foot-tall border wall have been built in the Tucson Sector since last summer.
When the projects are complete, they will span nearly 140 miles of the border from the New Mexico state line to the eastern edge of Yuma County. So far, the wall consists of a series of miles-long stretches with large gaps between them. The longest single stretch the Star has seen extends for about 10 miles.
The new wall will cut across most of the smuggling corridors used by meth backpackers, although not the roughly 60 miles of border on the Tohono O’odham Nation.
Most of the meth backpacker busts have been near Ajo, Casa Grande and the Tohono O’odham Nation, Curran said, although a few cases have occurred more to the east, including one in the Santa Rita Mountains.
In terms of the border wall, Brown said any additional infrastructure that slows down drug smugglers and illegal crossings is a benefit to law enforcement.
“The wall is going to help,” Curran said. “If it doesn’t completely stop people from coming over, what it does is it forces them to slow down.”
Those “critical seconds to minutes” give agents time to “make that apprehension on the ground,” Curran said.
As more meth smuggling attempts are made in the desert, “that only reinforces the idea that we do need that wall,” Curran said.
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