TUCSON, Ariz. – U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the Port of San Luis arrested four persons for attempting to smuggle more than 72 pounds collectively of methamphetamine and heroin earlier this week.
Officers referred a 25-year-old Mexican national for a secondary inspection of his Honda station wagon on May 11. A CBP narcotics-detection canine alerted to a compartment behind the vehicle’s backseat, leading officers to nearly two dozen packages of drugs. The packages contained more than 23 pounds of meth, worth nearly $70,000, as well as nearly three pounds of heroin, valued at nearly $52,000.
Tuesday, officers referred a 28-year-old Yuma man for further inspection of his Jeep SUV. A narcotics canine led officers to the spare tire, where they recovered nearly 39 pounds of meth, worth more than $116,000. In another incident, a 17-year-old U.S. teen living in San Luis, Rio Colorado, Sonora, Mexico, was recommended for further questioning as he crossed through the pedestrian lanes. When the male subject was searched, officers removed more than five pounds of meth that was wrapped around his midsection, with an estimated value of more than $15,000.
Also on Tuesday, a 19-year-old U.S. male living in San Luis, Rio Colorado, Sonora, Mexico, was referred for further inspection as he came through the pedestrian crossing.
The person was found to be carrying meth that was wrapped around his legs. The drugs weighed nearly three pounds, with an estimated value of nearly $7,600.
Officers seized the drugs and vehicles, and all four subjects were arrested and turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.