TUCSON, Ariz. – U.S. Border Patrol agents working the I-19 immigration checkpoint in Amado seized a combined total of more than 211 pounds of methamphetamine and arrested two Mexican nationals over the weekend.
Around 9:30 a.m. Friday, agents referred a 1996 Ford pickup truck with Sonora, Mexico, plates to a secondary inspection, where the driver agreed to have his vehicle inspected by a K-9 team. After the K-9 alerted to the gas tank, agents using a fuel tank inspection scope discovered the presence of liquid meth in the tank. The driver, a citizen of Mexico, was arrested and turned over to the Arizona Department of Public Safety. The vehicle was transported to an AZ DPS hazmat facility, where roughly 131 pounds of liquid meth were drained from the gas tank.
A nearly repeat situation occurred around 1 p.m. Saturday, when a K-9 partner alerted to a 2023 Nissan sedan bearing Sonoran license plates. Using a scope, agents discovered and subsequently removed 28 vacuum sealed bundles of meth from the gas tank. An X-ray machine inspection revealed an additional 44 bundles hidden throughout the vehicle, bringing the total weight of the drugs to about 80 pounds. The Mexican national driver, in the country on a travel visa, was arrested and turned over to the Drug Enforcement Administration.
Both drivers are facing prosecution.
“Immigration checkpoints play a vital role in our multilayered defense strategy, and the checkpoint on I-19 is one of the busiest in the United States,” said Sean McGoffin, Chief Patrol Agent of Tucson Sector. “This is yet another example of how our agents tirelessly protect the nation, enforcing our immigration laws and keeping dangerous drugs out of our communities.”
Follow the Chief of Tucson Sector on the social media platform X at @USBPChiefTCA and U.S. Customs and Border Protection at @CBPArizona for breaking news, current events, human interest stories and photos.