Nogales Border Drug Busts

A Compilation of the Latest Drug Smuggling Stories
A CBP marijuana seizure from August 2016. Source: U.S. Customs and Border Protection

Nogales Drug Smuggling and Border Crime

 

Nogales, Arizona is a major international destination for illegal drugs crossing the southern border into the United States. In fact, it seems like every week there is another huge drug bust at the Mexican border at Nogales.

This has especially been true since the expansion of the Mariposa Port of Entry, which has not only facilitated the flow of products into Arizona from south of the border, but also an increased volume of illicit drugs, as entire drug stash warehouses have been discovered on both sides of the border, in Nogales, Mexico and Nogales, Arizona.

Nogales border drug interdiction news stories can be sad and sensational. Using elderly women and children as drug mules. Entire semi loads of marijuana hidden under watermelons or other produce. Individuals who swallow condoms filled with drugs or hide them inside of body orifices.

But as the official reports of drug seizures become more frequent and receive wide distribution and news media coverage, it becomes more difficult to gauge their cumulative impact. Sensational amounts of drug seizures are replaced by even new records for drug hauls, individual stories that do not show the consolidated impact of the international drug smuggling efforts.

That is why we follow reports of Nogales border drug interdictions and present them in one place, along with analyses and summaries of the successes and failures of Customs and Border Protection and other drug interdiction agencies. That way we can provide the most complete, intelligent and informative source of information about the border drug apprehension efforts in the Nogales border region.

Meth hidden in tortillas carried by a 62-year-old Nogales, AZ man

Cross-Border Marijuana Load Intercepted, Seized Near Nogales

Joint Border Patrol – Air and Marine Operations (AMO) Effort November 22, 2016 A joint operational effort by the U.S. Border Patrol and Air and Marine Operations (AMO) netted a major haul of marijuana that was seized near Nogales after it was abandoned by fleeing drug...

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Busy First Week of November 2016 for Nogales CBP Officers

Seven busts yield more than $1 million in meth and cocaine November 13, 2016 From November 1 to November 7, 2016, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials intercepted approximately 170 pounds of hard drugs valued at $1.05 million and arrested three Arizona women,...

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Summary Info for $3.2 Million in October Nogales Drug Seizures

Seizure values increased over August and September totals November 2, 2016 United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers kept more than $3.2 million worth of illegal hard drugs off of America’s streets in October 2016 by finding and seizing them at the...

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Nearly 25lbs of meth was discovered in a Volkswagen sedan driven by a Nogales, Mexico man