Man arrested with $294k worth of drugs & $18k in bulk cash
Border Patrol agents arrest a man suspected of smuggling narcotics and bulk cash.
Tuesday night, at approximately 8 p.m., a silver 2003 Honda Accord coupe was stopped by Border Patrol agents on the I-10 near Eagle Mountain Road. The vehicle was stopped based on observations by the agents.
During the vehicle stop, agents interviewed the driver, afterwards, the Border Patrol detection canine team was called in to perform a canine sniff of the vehicle based on further observations made by the agents. The canine team subsequently alerted agents to the rear part of the vehicle.
Agents conducted a thorough search of the Honda and discovered an aftermarket compartment built into the driver’s side rear quarter panel. Shortly thereafter, agents pulled 16 bundles of black tar heroin and 18 bundles of methamphetamine from the compartment. Upon further search of the vehicle, agents also discovered $18,000 in bulk cash.
The methamphetamine had a total weight of 20.1 pounds with an estimated street value of $68,340. The heroin weighed a total of 20.6 pounds with an estimated street value of $226,000.
“This was great work by our agents discovering the narcotics and cash,” said David S. Kim Assistant Chief Patrol Agent. “These dangerous substances were intercepted and seizing the cash always hurts criminal enterprises’ bottom line.”
The man, a 27-year-old United States citizen, vehicle, currency, and narcotics were turned over to the Drug Enforcement Administration for further investigation.
In fiscal year 2017, El Centro Sector has seized more than 683.35 pounds of methamphetamine and 116.41 pounds of heroin.
