Tucson, Ariz. - U.S. Border Patrol agents assigned to Sonoita Station seized 1,060 pounds of marijuana Monday afternoon near a cemetery. A canine team assisted with discovering the 21 bundles of marijuana hidden among some brush. The value of the marijuana is approximately $848,000.
Border Patrol agents have been extremely effective at stopping illegal drugs at the border and preventing them from reaching our communities. In the past four days, Tucson Sector agents seized nearly 16,000 pounds, or eight tons, of marijuana. The estimated value of the marijuana is $12.8 million.
Checkpoints and canine units have been critical to this weekend's drug interdiction success. The continued success of the Border Patrol's "Defense in Depth" Strategy allows agents conducting checkpoint operations to disrupt the pathways of illegal drugs while canine units increase effectiveness by swiftly detecting contraband.
In the first three months of this fiscal year (October through December), agents in the Tucson Sector seized more than 270,000 pounds of marijuana. The estimated value of the contraband is greater than $122 million. During the same time frame last year the Tucson Sector had seized over 230,000 pounds of marijuana.