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  4. CBP Field Operations Seizes 3,000 Pounds of Marijuana Disguised as Watermelons at the Pharr International Bridge

CBP Field Operations Seizes 3,000 Pounds of Marijuana Disguised as Watermelons at the Pharr International Bridge

Release Date
Thu, 01/19/2017

PHARR, Texas—U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Office of Field Operations (OFO) at the Pharr International Bridge cargo facility discovered 3,000 pounds of alleged marijuana within a commercial shipment of fresh watermelons.

“Smugglers continue to be creative as they attempt to introduce illegal narcotics into our country,” said Port Director Efrain Solis Jr., Hidalgo/Pharr/Anzalduas Port of Entry. “Our frontline CBP officers’ experience, vigilance and attention to detail prevents the introduction of these dangerous drugs into our country.”

Packages shaped like watermelons containing 3,000 pounds of marijuana seized by CBP officers at Pharr International Bridge
Watermelon-shaped packages containing 3,000
pounds of marijuana seized by CBP officers at
Pharr International Bridge in watermelon shipment.

The seizure occurred on January 17, when CBP officers assigned to the Pharr International Bridge cargo facility encountered a white 1993 Thermo King tractor trailer. After the conveyance was referred for a secondary inspection, CBP officers utilized a non-intrusive imagining (NII) system along with the help of a canine team to locate the narcotics. CBP officers extracted 390 packages containing a total of 3,000 pounds of alleged marijuana concealed within the watermelon shipment.

CBP OFO seized the drugs, valued at approximately $600,092. The case remains under investigation by Homeland Security Investigations special agents.

For more information about CBP, please click on the attached link.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control and protection of our nation's borders at and between the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.

Last Modified: Feb 03, 2021