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  4. Arizona CBP Officers Seize $343k in Hard Drugs

Arizona CBP Officers Seize $343k in Hard Drugs

Release Date
Thu, 04/02/2015

TUCSON, Ariz. – Customs and Border Protection officers arrested a pair of Mexican nationals for failed attempts to smuggle methamphetamine and heroin through the Port of Nogales.

23 packages of seized drugs sitting on top of vehicle

Nearly $253,000 worth of meth and heroin are seized by CBP officers working at the DeConcini crossing in Nogales, Ariz.

After officers at the Dennis DeConcini crossing selected Brenda Patricia Carrizoza-Peralta, 30, of Nogales, Sonora, Mexico, for further inspection of her Ford truck on March 31, a narcotics-detection canine alerted to the presence of drugs. As a result, officers found more than six pounds of heroin, worth about $90,000, hidden within the rear axles.

Earlier today (April 1), officers at the DeConcini crossing referred a Dodge truck being driven by Ramon Orlando Rosas-Meraz, 54, of Nogales, Sonora, Mexico, for further inspection. After a CBP narcotics detection canine alerted to the firewall, officers located and removed 23 packages of drugs. Six of the packages contained more than 14 pounds of heroin worth more than $198,000 while 17 other packages contained more than 18 pounds of meth worth more than $54,000.

Officers processed the vehicle and drugs for seizure, and referred Carrizoza and Rosas to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control and protection of our nation's borders at and between the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.

Last Modified: Feb 03, 2021