SALTON CITY, Calif. – El Centro Sector Border Patrol agents arrested two people suspected of smuggling methamphetamine inside the gas tank of a vehicle early Sunday morning.
meth from a gas tank.
The incident occurred shortly after 8 am, when a vehicle approached the primary inspection area of the Highway 86 Checkpoint. A Border Patrol agent at primary inspection referred the driver and his female passenger to secondary for further immigration inspection.
While in secondary, a Border Patrol canine detection team alerted to the rear section of the vehicle.
After a thorough search of the vehicle, agents discovered 40 wrapped bundles hidden inside the vehicle’s gas tank. All substances were tested and proved positive for methamphetamine.
The weight of the methamphetamine totaled 45.01 pounds with an estimated value of $148,533.
The man and woman, both United States citizens, the narcotics, and vehicle were turned over to the Drug Enforcement Administration for further investigation.
In fiscal year 2018, El Centro Sector has seized more than 754.98 pounds of methamphetamine.