U.S. intercepts $8M of meth hidden in strawberries
May 03 , 2021
The seizure occurred at Pharr International Bridge cargo facility on April 29.
Officers referred a tractor/trailer hauling a commercial shipment of fresh strawberries for further inspection and ultimately, and they discovered 177 packages of alleged methamphetamine concealed within the boxes of strawberries.
These bundles of narcotics weighed 411 pounds (186.5 kg) and are valued at $8,223,000.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection seized all the narcotics, the conveyance and the case remains under investigation by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
Just a few days before, officers at the same facility intercepted a shipment of $4.4 million worth of methamphetamine that was hidden inside 114 packages of cucumber pickles.
CBP Field Operations executes double play, intercepting over $8 million in narcotics
Officers with U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Office of Field Operations (OFO) at the Pharr International Bridge cargo facility were busy recently with the interception of two separate, unrelated seizures of alleged methamphetamine and marijuana valued at $8,348,000 discovered within commercial shipments arriving from Mexico.
“Our officers definitely rose to the challenge by detecting these narcotics loads in two separate commercial shipments at our cargo facility,” said Port Director Carlos Rodriguez, Port of Hidalgo/Pharr/Anzalduas. “As daunting a task as this may seem, our officers are able to effectively balance processing lawful trade while maintaining a robust enforcement posture to advance our border security mission.”
Border Agents Arrest 57-Year-Old Man Wanted In Harris County For Aggravated Child Sexual Assault Syndicated Local – CBS Dallas / Fort Worth
PHARR, Texas (CBSDFW.COM) A a 57-year-old Mexican national and lawful permanent resident from Edcouch, Texas was arrested by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the Pharr International Bridge two days ago.
Jaime Javier Ruelas Mirele had an outstanding arrest warrant from the Harris County Sheriff’s Office for two counts of aggravated sexual assault of a child under the age of 14, according to law enforcement officials. Both first-degree felonies was issued in December 2018 for alleged incidents that occurred in 2016.
It wasnât exactly Peter Piperâs peck of pickled peppers, but a shipment of what border agents deemed to be funky pickles got the shippers in a peck of trouble.
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Office of Field Operations at the Pharr International Bridge cargo facility smelled something off, decided to investigate a tractor-trailer load of cucumber pickles, and discovered more than 200 pounds of alleged methamphetamine worth $4.3 million, the agency announced last week.
The 114 packages were being smuggled into the U.S. in a commercial shipment of fresh produce, CBP said.
The contraband was found after agents conducted a ânonintrusive imaging system inspection,â in which packages or shipments are subject to X-ray or Gamma-ray imaging, CBP explained. They found the 217 pounds concealed within the trailer, the agency said.