SANTA TERESA, NM– U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers working at the Santa Teresa, New Mexico Port of Entry made a large drug seizure on Tuesday. CBP officers seized 927.96 pounds of marijuana with an estimated street value of $742,368.
“This seizure was made due to the vigilance of our officers utilizing a combination of tools and experience to detect a deeply concealed load of narcotics,” said CBP Santa Teresa Port Director Ray Provencio. “The sophistication of this concealment method shows the extent to which smugglers go to introduce contraband to the streets of our communities.”
The seizure was made after a semi-tractor hauling metal pipes on a flatbed trailer entered the port from Mexico. CBP officers selected the conveyance for a non-intrusive x-ray inspection which revealed an anomaly in the metal pipes. CBP drug sniffing dog “Roma” searched the trailer and alerted to the same area. CBP officers drilled the suspect area and recovered a green substance which tested positive for marijuana. CBP officers discovered six non-metal containers concealed within the pipes containing the marijuana. No arrest was made and the case remains under investigation.
While anti-terrorism is the primary mission of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the inspection process at the ports of entry associated with this mission results in impressive numbers of enforcement actions in all categories.