Tucson Sector Border Patrol agents from the Ajo Station apprehended three Phoenix residents in a BMW SUV Tuesday afternoon at the State Route 85 Immigration Checkpoint after finding more than $148,000 worth of marijuana in the vehicle.
Agents referred the driver for a secondary inspection of the vehicle after a Border Patrol canine alerted to an odor it was trained to detect. While searching the SUV, agents found eight large bundles of marijuana in the rear cargo area.
The male driver and two female passengers, all U.S. citizens, were arrested for drug smuggling and turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.