A 28-year-old driver was arrested last week after border agents in Southern California discovered more than $10 million worth of narcotics hidden inside a shipment of jalapeno paste, authorities said.
Border agents at the Otay Mesa Cargo Facility found the driver transporting vats of jalapeno paste in a commercial tractor-trailer shortly after 10:30 a.m. Wednesday, U.S. Customs and Border Protection said ( CBP).
The driver, who authorities say holds a valid border crossing card, was referred to a secondary area for further examination along with his truck and shipment, the agency said.
A CBP K-9 unit inspected the shipment and alerted officers to what border officials described in a post on X as a “hot find.”
A total of 349 suspicious packages were discovered inside the barrels of jalapeno paste, the agency said.
A K-9 alerted officers to closer inspect the shipment of jalapeno paste. U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Testing of the packages revealed that they contained 3,161.43 pounds of methamphetamine and 522.5 pounds of cocaine.
The estimated street value of the drugs is $10.4 million, according to the agency.
Border agents seized the drugs and the tractor-trailer, while the driver was turned over to Homeland Security Investigations for further processing.
A total of 349 suspicious packages were discovered inside the barrels of jalapeño paste. U.S. Customs and Border Protection The 28-year-old driver was turned over to Homeland Security Investigations for further processing. U.S. Customs and Border Protection
No further details about the driver were immediately provided.
“Our K-9 teams are an invaluable component of our counternarcotics operations, providing reliable and unmatched mobile detection capability,” said Otay Mesa Port Director Rosa Hernandez, adding that the agency will continue to protect communities and “stifling the growth of transnational operations.” criminal organizations, one seizure after another.”
The agency’s San Diego field office seized a total of more than 14,000 pounds of narcotics in November.
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Source: vtt.edu.vn