Crime
$1.3M Worth Of Cocaine Found in Trailer’s Fifth Wheel At Otay Mesa
|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
$1.3M worth of cocaine found in trailer’s fifth wheel at Otay Mesa
With the help of a K9 detection team and non-intrusive inspection technology, CBP officers discovered dozens of packages of cocaine concealed within a flatbed truck at the Otay Mesa Port of Entry. (CBP)
EL PASO, Texas (Border Report) — Federal officials are crediting Operation Apollo with another significant drug bust at the U.S.-Mexico border.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection said officers found more than $1 million worth of cocaine hidden within a flatbed tractor-trailer on Sept. 10 at the commercial crossing at the Otay Mesa Port of Entry in San Diego.
$730K in cocaine seized at South Texas reservoir port of entry, CBP says
The driver of the truck was only described as a 34-year-old man with a valid border crossing card holder.
During a secondary inspection, a drug-sniffing dog alerted officers to the tractor-trailer’s fifth wheel, where an X-ray revealed anomalies, CBP said.
Federal, local authorities launch bid to combat illegal machine gun conversions
CBP officers said they found 65 packages containing 167 pounds of cocaine with an estimated street value of $1.3 million.
CBP officers extracted 67 concealed packages weighing 167 pounds from at truck at the Otay Mesa Port of Entry. The contents of the packages tested positive for cocaine and had an estimated street value of more than $1.2 million. (CBP)
Rosa E. Hernandez, the port director for the Area Port of Otay Mesa, said attempted smuggling was done “ingeniously.”
“This significant interdiction underscores the relentless efforts and vigilance of our officers in protecting our communities from the scourge of illegal narcotics,” she said in a statement.
Operation Apollo is a counter-fentanyl effort that began last October in California, expanded to Arizona on April 10, and will soon expand to the El Paso area. It’s a collaboration between federal, state, local, tribal, and territorial partners to share intelligence and boost resources to crack down on the smuggling of fentanyl into the United States.
At Otay Mesa, CBP officers seized the cocaine and the tractor-trailer, while the driver was turned over to the custody of Homeland Security Investigations for further investigation, CBP said.
