EDINBURG, Texas – Since Thursday, Border Patrol agents seized more than $1M dollars worth of drugs and arrested seven people in connection to the failed smuggling attempts.
Thursday evening, Harlingen agents working near Los Indios, Texas, responded to a reported drug smuggling attempt in an area well known for human and narcotic smuggling. Agents along with a Border Patrol K-9 team responded. After an extensive search of the area, they discovered four bundles of marijuana and arrested two drug smugglers. The marijuana weighed more than 226 pounds, worth over $181K.
Friday morning, Fort Brown agents working near Brownsville, Texas, observed two smugglers walking north of the Rio Grande carrying marijuana bundles on their backs. Agents responded and a search of the area led to the discovery of a bundle of marijuana weighing nearly 50 pounds and worth more than $39K. The smugglers returned to Mexico.
That same evening, Rio Grande City agents on patrol near the Rio Grande in Escobares, Texas, observed several shoe prints on a brush trail. As the agents followed the shoe prints they discovered five bundles of marijuana abandoned in the brush. The marijuana weighed 236 pounds worth more than $188K. Agents searched the area for additional bundles or suspects to no avail.
On Sunday, agents working at the Falfurrias checkpoint referred a tractor-trailer for secondary inspection following a K-9 alert. At secondary, an inspection of the flatbed trailer revealed a compartment containing 276 bundles of marijuana weighing 770 pounds worth $616K. Agents placed the driver under arrest and escorted him to the station for processing.
Additionally, agents working at the checkpoints seized more than 2 pounds of marijuana, more than 2 pounds of methamphetamine and more than a half pound of cocaine in two incidents. The drugs are worth more than $87K combined.
The public is encouraged to take a stand against crime in their communities and report suspicious activity at 800-863-9382
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Even with the spread of the COVID-19 virus, human smugglers continue to try these brazen attempts with zero regard for the lives they endanger nor to the health of the citizens of our great nation. The U.S. Border Patrol agents of the Rio Grande Valley Sector will continue to safeguard the nation and community against these criminal elements.
Please visit www.cbp.gov to view additional news releases and other information pertaining to Customs and Border Protection. Follow us on Twitter @CBPRGV, @USBPChiefRGV and @USBPDepChiefRGV.