CBP Makes Massive Meth Seizure at California Border Crossing

FIRST ON THE DAILY SIGNAL—U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers seized nearly 1.4 tons of methamphetamine in a routine commercial truck inspection at a California border crossing.

The seizure points to a broader trend of transnational criminal networks using legitimate trade infrastructure to smuggle industrial-scale narcotics into the United States.

On April 14, CBP officers with the Otay Mesa Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Facility in San Diego, California, referred a 2017 Freightliner Cascadia and its trailer, driven by a Mexican citizen, for secondary inspection after the truck arrived at the crossing from Mexico. According to CBP, the shipment manifest declared the cargo as corrugated cardboard boxes. However, officers found 300 packages of methamphetamine concealed within the trailer’s front wall, totaling 3,078.1 pounds and carrying an estimated street value of nearly $5 million.

According to CBP, transnational criminal organizations routinely attempt to exploit legitimate trade by concealing narcotics in otherwise lawful cargo and using misleading manifests. Officers are trained to identify indicators of illicit activity and remain vigilant in detecting and interdicting illegal narcotics from entering the U.S.

The incident highlights an organized effort to use ordinary paperwork to exploit a commercial trade lane and move a massive narcotics load through a port of entry that processes enormous volumes of lawful commerce every day. The bigger story is whether the U.S. has the manpower, technology, and operational ability to detect and prevent sophisticated cartel activity moving through legal channels disguised as legitimate trade.

In this case, a nonintrusive inspection revealed anomalies in the trailer’s front wall, and a canine unit alerted officers to the same area. A further search uncovered methamphetamine. The case has been turned over to Homeland Security Investigations for further investigation, which now has responsibility for identifying the broader network behind the smuggling attempt.

Otay Mesa Port Director Rosa E. Hernandez praised the officers’ work as “unwavering guardians,” saying their diligence prevented illegal narcotics from entering the country and kept communities safe.

“Supported by the strong leadership of President Donald J. Trump and Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, our CBP officers at ports of entry are unwavering guardians,” said Hernandez. “Their diligence prevented illegal narcotics from entering our country, so our communities are kept safe from dangerous drugs.”

Earlier in April, CBP officers intercepted more than $1 million worth of cocaine hidden in a commercial passenger bus at the Hidalgo Port of Entry in Texas.