3 busts in 3 days: Border Patrol officers in Texas seize methamphetamine worth $4.5M

LAREDO, Texas — Officers with the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Office of Field Operations in Laredo, Texas, recently seized methamphetamine in three unrelated busts valued at $4.5 million.

“These three seizures of methamphetamine in both the passenger and commercial environments illustrate both the ongoing, pervasive nature of the hard narcotics our officers face on a daily basis and their firm resolve to keep our country safe from these dangerous drugs,” Acting Port Director for the Laredo Port of Entry Andrew Douglas said in a news release.

The first seizure occurred Aug. 25 when an officer at the Juarez Lincoln Bridge referred a 2014 Nissan Tsuru III for a secondary inspection. Reinspection revealed 15.74 pounds of methamphetamine, valued at an estimated $314,816, within the driver’s personal belongings.

The second narcotics interception occurred Aug. 26 at the World Trade Bridge, where officers assigned to the cargo facility encountered a tractor hauling a shipment of galvanized wire from Mexico. Inspection of the 2013 Freightliner tractor and shipment revealed 32 packages containing 83.11 pounds of methamphetamine, valued at nearly $1.7 million, within the shipment.

The third seizure occurred Aug. 27 when officers at the World Trade Bridge encountered a tractor manifesting a shipment of freezers coming in from Mexico. Inspection of the 2018 Ford C2 tractor and shipment revealed seven packages containing 179.89 pounds of alleged methamphetamine, valued at an estimated $2.5 million, within the shipment.

Canine and nonintrusive imaging system inspections were used in all three seizures.

All three cases have been turned over to special agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement-Homeland Security Investigations for further inquiry.

Cox Media Group