New BMW loaded…with cocaine

A 30-year old woman was arrested Wednesday after U.S. Border Patrol agents say she tried to smuggle cocaine worth more than $800,000 through the Coachella Valley.

The agents assigned to the Highway 111 checkpoint in Niland stopped the woman when a drug-sniffing canine indicated narcotics could be in her newer-model BMW 328i.

28 bundles of cocaine were found hidden in the car’s rocker panels during a secondary inspection.

In total, the cocaine weighed more than 70 pounds.

“This seizure not only denies Transnational Criminal Organizations the money and resources needed to continue their illicit activities but also helps keep our communities safe.” said Patrol Agent in Charge Scott Garrett of the Indio Station, in a news release issued Thursday.

The woman, who is a U.S. citizen, was turned over to the Drug Enforcement Administration, as well as the car and the drugs.

According to the news release, the El Centro sector has seized more than 148 pounds of cocaine so far in 2016, making the bust Wednesday nearly half of the total amount of cocaine seized.