Texas Border Business
EAGLE PASS, Texas — U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Office of Field Operations officers at the Eagle Pass Port of Entry seized more than $491,000 in cocaine hidden in a passenger vehicle.
On April 2, CBP officers at the Camino Real International Bridge referred a 2014 Ford pickup truck driven by a 57-year-old female Mexican citizen for a secondary examination. During the examination, which included utilization of nonintrusive inspection equipment and screening by a canine team, CBP officers discovered 16 packages containing a total of 36.81 pounds (16.70 kg) of alleged cocaine concealed within the vehicle. The cocaine has a total estimated street value of $491,581.
“Our frontline CBP officers applied their inspection skills, training and technology and seized a compact but significant amount of cocaine,” said Port Director Pete Beattie, Eagle Pass Port of Entry. “Seizures like these reinforce CBP’s border security mission and aptly illustrate that attempts to bring in controlled substances can result in serious criminal consequences.”
CBP OFO seized the narcotics and vehicle. Homeland Security Investigations special agents arrested the driver and initiated a criminal investigation.
