Customs and Border Protection officers at Arizona’s Port of Nogales apprehended three Mexican nationals during separate incidents late last week involving attempts to smuggle more than 100 pounds worth of methamphetamine and cocaine.
Officers working at the Dennis DeConcini Crossing last Thursday afternoon referred a 46-year-old Mexican man for further inspection of his Mitsubishi truck as he attempted to enter the United States there. A canine alerted to an odor it was trained to detect, leading officers to find more than 52 pounds of meth, worth in excess of $157,000, in the vehicle’s bed.
Friday evening, DeConcini officers referred a 23-year-old female Mexican driver and a 26-year-old Mexican woman for a secondary inspection of their Dodge sedan. Again, a CBP canine’s alert led to the discovery of drugs; this time in the vehicle’s rocker panels. Officers removed more than 45 pounds of meth, valued at close to $136,000, as well as almost three pounds of cocaine, worth nearly $30,000.
Officers arrested all three subjects for narcotics smuggling and seized both vehicles, along with the drugs. The subjects were then turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.