Marfa, Texas - Agents of the Border Patrol's Marfa sector seized more than $500,000 worth of marijuana in three different seizures Monday. Two of the seizures were in Presidio County and the third was in Terrell County.
Late Monday morning, agents working in Presidio County found foot sign of a group of people walking north. The agents followed the sign for about four hours before they encountered a group of four men. Two of the men tried to escape and one successfully avoided arrest. The other three were all Mexican citizens and were in the U.S. illegally. Two of the three were juveniles. A short distance from where the three men were, agents found backpacks containing over 185 pounds of marijuana.
Monday afternoon, Sanderson agents found foot sign of about eight people in an area east of Sanderson. About thirty minutes later agents came upon three men and then later found four more. After several foot chases, agents were able to arrest five men, all from Mexico and in the country illegally, and seize 423 pounds of marijuana.
Marfa Station agents manning the Highway 67 Checkpoint south of Marfa found 93 pounds of marijuana hidden in the wheels of 1996 Chevrolet Blazer Monday evening. The vehicle was being driven by a woman from Kansas and was occupied by three other women and a two-year-old girl all U.S. Citizens residing in Kansas.
In total, 712 pounds of marijuana were seized with an estimated street value of $562,080.
The Drug Enforcement Administration and Immigration and Customs Enforcement are continuing investigations into the three incidents.