U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at Arizona’s Port of Nogales arrested a 51-year-old Tucson woman Tuesday evening for attempting to smuggle nearly $130,000 worth of hard drugs into the United States.
Officers referred the woman for further inspection of a 1991 Nissan Sedan she was driving when she attempted to enter the U.S. through the Mariposa crossing. During the inspection, a CBP narcotics-detection canine alerted to the vehicle’s dashboard. Officers conducting the search then discovered a non-factory compartment within the dash, containing nine packages of drugs.
Officers seized the vehicle and drugs, which consisted of more than 5 pounds of meth, worth in excess of $16,000; almost 3 pounds of cocaine, valued at more than $31,000; a little more than a pound of heroin, worth an estimated $23,500; and more than 3.5 pounds of fentanyl, with an estimated value of more than $58,000.
The woman was arrested for narcotics smuggling and turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.