Customs and Border Protection officers at Arizona’s Port of Nogales apprehended two U.S. citizens and a Mexican national during separate attempts to smuggle more than $693,000 worth of heroin, fentanyl, cocaine and methamphetamine Monday evening.
Officers working at the Dennis DeConcini crossing referred a 17-year-old Rio Rico teen for further inspection of his Mazda sedan as he attempted to cross into the U. S. A CBP narcotics-detection canine subsequently alerted to the vehicle trunk where officers found more than 57 pounds of meth, worth in excess of $171,000.
At about the same time, DeConcini officers referred a 22-year-old Mexican man for a secondary inspection of his Chrysler sedan. Once again, a CBP canine alerted to the vehicle’s trunk where officers found more than 10 pounds of cocaine, worth close to $119,000.
A few hours later, officers at the Mariposa crossing discovered almost $400,000 worth of hard drugs within the spare tire and rear seat of a Tucson woman’s Lincoln SUV. Seized drugs included more than a pound of fentanyl, nearly 2 pounds of cocaine, almost 10 pounds of heroin and close to 67 pounds of meth.
Officers arrested all three subjects for narcotics smuggling and seized their vehicles, along with the drugs. The subjects were then turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.