Douglas, Arizona - U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers stopped a unique drug smuggling attempt when they seized nearly 11 pounds of marijuana concealed inside the drive shaft of a Ford Focus.
On July 18 at about 9 a.m. while CBP officers were screening traffic coming from Mexico, they selected a 2001 Ford Focus, driven by a 29-year-old man from Agua Prieta, Sonora, Mexico, for inspection. After a CBP narcotics detection K-9 team alerted to narcotics odor coming from the vehicle's drive shaft, officers investigated closer and found that the drive line was loaded with packages of marijuana.
The total weight of marijuana was 11 pounds with an estimated street value of $16,000.
CBP officers seized the vehicle and the marijuana. The man was turned over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement for further investigation and prosecution.
The Office of Field Operations is responsible for securing our borders at the ports of entry. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers' primary mission is anti-terrorism; they screen all people, vehicles, and goods entering the United States, while facilitating the flow of legitimate trade and travel into and out of the United States. Their mission also includes carrying out traditional border-related responsibilities, including narcotics interdiction, enforcing immigration law, protecting the nation's food supply and agriculture industry from pests and diseases, and enforcing trade laws.
While anti-terrorism is the primary mission of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the inspection process at the ports of entry associated with this mission results in impressive numbers of enforcement actions in all categories.
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.