$1.1M pot load, $1M in hard drugs seized in Nogales

Posted Jan 30, 2015

Paul Ingram
TucsonSentinel.com

Customs and Border ProtectionBundles of marijuana found among a load of bell peppers Thursday by Customs and Border Protection officers at the Mariposa crossing in Nogales.
Customs and Border ProtectionHeroin and methamphetamine found in the back of a Dodge truck in Nogales

In two days, Customs and Border Protection officers in Nogales seized more than $2 million in drugs in separate incidents.

On Wednesday, CBP officers at the Dennis DeConcini crossing found 47 pounds of heroin and almost 14 pounds of methamphetamine hidden in a Dodge truck drive by a 36-year-old man from Nogales, Sonora. Officers estimated the heroin to be worth around $666,000 and the meth worth more than $41,000, according to a news release from CBP.

On Thursday, officers at the Mariposa crossing arrested a 33-year-old woman from Nogales, Ariz., when they found 2.5 pounds of heroin and 24 pounds of meth hidden in the floor of her Nissan sedan. Officers estimated the value of the heroin at $36,500 and the meth to be worth $71,500, the release said.

Later that day, officers stopped a 20-year-old woman and her 26-year-old boyfriend, both from Tucson, and discovered more than 23 pounds of cocaine, worth around $245,000 hidden in the rear bumper of their Dodge sedan, the release said.

On Thursday, officers working at the Mariposa crossing arrested Mexican national Jorge Luis Castro-Rivera, 43, after a drug dog led officers to 99 bundles of marijuana weighing 2,215 pounds hidden among a load of bell peppers, the release said.

Officers estimated the total value of the pot at more than $1.1 million.

All five were turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, and the vehicles and drugs were seized.

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$1.1M pot load, $1M in hard drugs seized in Nogales

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$1.1M pot load, $1M in hard drugs seized in Nogales