Border Patrol agents seize $1.7 million in drugs

Posted Jul 2, 2014

Paul Ingram
TucsonSentinel.com

Customs and Border ProtectionBundles of marijuana worth nearly $1.1 million discovered in a cache near Lukeville on June 15.

Border Patrol agents seized two loads of marijuana worth a combined $1.7 million in two incidents during mid-June.

On June 15, Border Patrol agents assigned with the Ajo Border Patrol station discovered 2,100 pounds marijuana near Lukeville, worth an estimated $1.1 million.

Helped by a canine unit and a helicopter with the Office of Air and Marine, the agents spotted several potential subjects heading into Mexico, but did not make any arrest, according to a statement from the agency.

Three days later, Border Patrol agents responded to an activated sensor and found a Chevy Tahoe in a wash near Kohatk, around 40 miles southwest of Eloy. Inside the vehicle was 54 bundles of marijuana worth more than $63,000, the press release said.

The last seizure was credited to the West Desert Task Force, a joint initiative that includes Border Patrol, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, and the Pinal County Sheriff's Office.

Border Patrol agents arrested four U.S. citizens for human smuggling in three separate incidents in mid-June, arresting three immigrants in the country illegally, the statement said.

Border Patrol also arrested a Mexican man after he was stopped by Arizona Department of Public Safety officers near Tucson, and seized a firearm and ammunition.