TUCSON, Ariz. – U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at Arizona’s Port of Nogales apprehended a 25-year-old Phoenix man Friday morning for attempting to smuggle more than $102,000 worth of methamphetamine into the United States.
Officers referred the man for further inspection of a 2017 Volkswagen Jetta he was driving when he attempted to enter the U.S. through the DeConcini crossing. During the inspection, a CBP narcotics-detection canine alerted to the vehicle’s rear bumper. Officers conducting the search then discovered and removed 27 packages of meth, weighing a combined 34 pounds, concealed in the bumper.
Officers seized the vehicle and drugs. The man was arrested for narcotics smuggling and turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.