OTAY MESA, Calif. – U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers assigned to the Otay Mesa commercial facility discovered nearly to 200 pounds of liquid methamphetamine concealed in the fuel tank of a tractor.
On Aug. 7, at approximately 8:40 p.m., CBP officers encountered a 25-year-old male driver of a tractor trailer applying for entry at the Otay Mesa cargo facility. During the initial inspection, a CBP officer referred the driver, tractor, and trailer for further scrutiny.
In secondary, CBP officers conducted a thorough hands-on inspection. While inspecting the fuel tank of the tractor CBP officers noticed a liquid substance in the tank begin to crystalize. The substance was tested by CBP officers and identified as liquid methamphetamine.
CBP officers removed the liquid methamphetamine from the fuel tank of the tractor. The narcotics were placed in six five-gallon buckets with a total weight of 195.33 pounds. The estimated street value of the drug shipment is $221,500.
“This unusual concealment method shows that drug traffickers will try anything to get their product across our borders,” said Rosa Hernandez, Port Director for the Otay Mesa port of entry. “I am proud of the remarkable job our Otay Mesa CBP officers do every day, because even in this extreme weather, they do not lower their guard when it comes to protecting our nation’s borders.”
The narcotics, tractor, and trailer were seized by CBP officers.
CBP offices turned the driver over to the custody of Homeland Security Investigations for further disposition.
Southern California CBP officers stop illegal activity while processing millions of legitimate travelers into the United States. Those statistics can be found at: CBP-enforcement-statistics
Follow the Director of CBP’s San Diego Field Office on Twitter at @DFOSanDiegoCA for breaking news, current events, human interest stories and photos.