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

September 2016 Nogales Drug Seizures Exceed $3.1 Million

September 30 drug arrests and the September wrap-up September 30, 2016 The last two September Nogales border drug busts occurred on the last day of the month. A 59-year-old Mexican national driving a Nissan sedan was flagged for secondary inspection at the DeConcini...

read more

September 17 Nogales Drug Busts Seize $236k in Drugs

Three Vehicular Drug Seizures at DeConcini and Mariposa September 17, 2016 Three vehicular drug seizures and subsequent arrests of three Mexican nationals on September 17 netted a total of more than $236,000 in methamphetamine, heroin and marijuana.  Two of the...

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