Nogales, Ariz. — A Mexican man was arrested Wednesday at the Nogales commercial facility for attempting to smuggle nearly 7,400 pounds of marijuana into the United States.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers referred Cuauhtemoc Lopez-Cabrera, 30, of Nogales, Sonora, Mexico, for additional inspection of the Freightliner tractor-trailer he was driving. After a CBP narcotics detection canine alerted to the presence of drugs co-mingled within a shipment of tomatoes, officers found 315 bales of marijuana worth an estimated $3,699,000. The drugs and tractor-trailer were processed for seizure. Lopez was turned over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
“CBP officers in Nogales made use of several layers of enforcement to identify and locate the marijuana,” said Nogales Port Director Guadalupe Ramirez. “Experience and dedication of our personnel work as a containment net to prevent these drugs from entering our nation.”
CBP's Office of Field Operations is the primary organization within Homeland Security tasked with an anti-terrorism mission at our nation’s ports. CBP officers screen all people, vehicles and goods entering the United States while facilitating the flow of legitimate trade and travel. Their mission also includes carrying out border-related duties, including narcotics interdiction, enforcing immigration and trade laws, and protecting the nation's food supply and agriculture industry from pests and diseases.