CBP June Drug Seizures Total $2.84 Million
Summary and Analysis
During the month of June 2018 Customs and Border Protection (CBP) made 12 arrests for alleged drug smuggling during nine days at the Nogales international border ports of entry. Nine women and three men were arrested at the border. Of the 12, five of them were identified as Mexican nationals, one was identified as being a resident of Tucson and the nationality or residence location of the other six was not provided.
Arrests were made on approximately one of every three days (30 % of days) of June. Most of those (75 %) were made on a Friday, Saturday or Sunday, and the other 25 % were made on a Tuesday or Thursday. There were no seizures made on Mondays in June, and as in May 2018 there were no border drug arrests on Wednesdays of June 2018.
One-third (four) of the June 2018 Nogales international border drug busts were “body carriers” trying to smuggle hard drugs across the border, seven of the seizures involved drugs hidden in a vehicle and one drug arrest involved drugs located in a backpack inside of a vehicle.
There were five drug seizures and apprehensions at the DeConcini Port of Entry in downtown Nogales, Arizona, three drug seizures at the Mariposa Port of Entry and two drug interdictions at the Morley Avenue Pedestrian Gate. CBP press releases did not identify the location of the other two drug busts.
Drugs seized include:
Heroin – Eight seizures for a total of 91.5 pounds (three were pedestrian body carriers), valued at approximately $1,604,000
Fentanyl – Three seizures for a total of 11.5 pounds, valued at approximately $171,000
Cocaine – Three seizures for a total of 83 pounds, valued at approximately $693,000
Methamphetamine – Six seizures for a total of 125 pounds, valued at approximately $372,200
Marijuana – There were no marijuana seizures at Nogales international ports in June
Prescription Drugs – One seizure for 372 doses, value not estimated
June 2018 Nogales Border CBP Drug Seizures
Saturday, June 2 – There were three arrests for alleged border drug smuggling
The first Nogales international border drug bust of June 2018 occurred on Saturday morning, when a 40-year-old Mexican man driving a Chevy truck was referred to the Mariposa Port of Entry secondary inspection area, where customs officers found 50 pounds of cocaine and methamphetamine valued at $379,000 in the back wall of the vehicle’s cab. Officials recovered approximately 22 pounds of meth valued at $65,000 and 28 pounds of cocaine with an estimated value of $314,000.
That afternoon customs officers at the Morley Gate Pedestrian Crossing searched a 29-year-old woman and found packages of heroin hidden in the chest and midsection areas of her body. Officials seized nearly a half pound of heroin valued at approximately $7,000. The CBP press release did not mention the woman’s nationality or location of residence.
And that Saturday evening a 58-year-old woman attempting to cross the Nogales international border at the DeConcini Port of Entry was detained after customs officers noted the abnormal appearance of her bottle of soda. Turns out that it was no longer a soda bottle and instead was a container for illegally smuggling prescription medications. Officials also found illicit prescription drugs hidden in the woman’s undergarments. The CBP press release did not mention the woman’s nationality or location of residence. Read more.
Sunday, June 3 – A Mexican woman with meth and heroin at DeConcini
A 28-year-old woman attempted to cross the border at the DeConcini Port of Entry in a Chevy sedan with almost 17 pounds of methamphetamine and five pounds of heroin hidden in the dashboard of the car. The meth was valued at more than $50,000 and the heroin was estimated to have a value of $84,000, for a combined value of $134,000. The CBP press release did not mention the woman’s nationality or location of residence.
Tuesday, June 12 – Mexican national SENTRI participant with cocaine in vehicle
Customs officials at the DeConcini Port of entry arrested a 37-year-old Mexican man who had been approved for participation in the CBP’s Secure Electronic Network for Travelers Rapid Inspection (SENTRI) program after they found 32 pounds of cocaine hidden in the spare tire of his Ford truck. The cocaine was estimated to have a value of approximately $364,000.
Thursday, June 14 – Two arrests for alleged border drug smuggling
A 21-year-old woman driving a Volkswagen sedan was directed to secondary inspection at the DeConcini Port of Entry, where customs officers found packages of hard drugs concealed in various locations of the vehicle. Officials recovered approximately five pounds of heroin valued near $86,000, two pounds of fentanyl with a value of $24,000 and 21 pounds of methamphetamine that was estimated to have a value of $62,000. The total estimated value of the illicit drugs was estimated to be approximately $172,000. The CBP press release did not mention the woman’s nationality or location of residence.
Customs officers at the Mariposa Port of Entry flagged a 44-year-old Mexican woman driving a Nissan SUV for secondary inspection. There, they found approximately 7.5 pounds of fentanyl in a backpack located in the vehicle. The fentanyl was estimated to have a value of more than $117,000.
Saturday, June 16 – A 42-year-old Mexican woman with a spare tire valued at $845,000
On Saturday morning a 42-year-old Mexican woman driving a Chevy SUV through one of the Nogales international ports of entry was directed to secondary inspection, where customs officers found almost 50 pounds of hard drugs inside the vehicle’s spare tire. Officers seized 45 pounds of heroin valued at approximately $800,000; two pounds of fentanyl with a value of $30,000 and a pound of cocaine that was estimated to be worth almost $15,000. The CBP press release did not mention where (at which Nogales international port) the bust happened.
Sunday, June 17 – A 21-year-old woman with 50 pounds of heroin and meth in her Dodge SUV
A 21-year-old woman driving through the Mariposa Port of Entry was directed to the port’s secondary inspection area, where customs officers located approximately $414,000 in heroin and methamphetamine that had been hidden in her Dodge SUV. Officials recovered approximately 19 pounds of heroin valued at $322,000 and 31 pounds of methamphetamine that was estimated to be worth $92,000. The CBP press release did not mention the woman’s nationality or location of residence.
Friday, June 22 – A 23-year-old Tucson woman with 40 packages of heroin and meth
A CBP drug-detection canine at the DeConcini Port of Entry referred a Honda sedan driven by a 23-year-old woman to secondary inspection area. There, customs officers located and extracted more than 40 packages of heroin and methamphetamine that had been hidden in the vehicle’s quarter panels. Officials seized more than 13 pounds of heroin with an estimated value of $230,000 and 34 pounds of meth valued at approximately $103,000. Total for the haul was 47 pounds of hard drugs with an estimated value of $333,000. The CBP press release did not mention the woman’s nationality or location of residence.
Friday, June 29 – A Mexican woman with three pounds of heroin at the Morley Gate
A 31-year-old Mexican woman attempted to walk across the border at the Morley Pedestrian Gate with three pounds of heroin taped across her chest. She was caught and arrested. The heroin was estimated to have a value of nearly $54,000.
Saturday, June 30 – A 28-year-old man driving Acura with small amounts of meth and heroin
A 28-year-old man was flagged for secondary inspection at one of the Nogales international ports of entry (CBP did not mention where the bust occurred). A drug-detection canine alerted customs officers to a pound of heroin in three packages taped around the man’s lower legs, and a package of methamphetamine hidden in his waistband. The heroin was valued in excess of $21,000 and the meth had an estimated value of $200. The CBP press release did not mention the man’s nationality or location of residence.
Source: U.S. Customs and Border Protection press releases