CBP seizes nearly $3M in marijuana in Nogales

Posted Nov 7, 2014

Paul Ingram
TucsonSentinel.com

Customs and Border ProtectionThe interior of a tractor-trailer carrying fiber optic cables where Customs and Border Protection officers at Mariposa port discovered nearly 6,000 pounds of marijuana worth an estimated $2.96 million.
Customs and Border ProtectionNearly 6,000 pounds of marijuana worth an estimated $2.96 million found at the Mariposa port on Wednesday.

Customs and Border Protection officers at the Mariposa cargo facility in Nogales seized nearly 6,000 pounds of marijuana inside a tractor-trailer on Wednesday, authorities said.

Officers discovered the load of marijuana, worth an estimated $2.96 million hidden among a northbound shipment of fiber optic cables after a drug dog alerted to the trailer, the agency said.

Officers arrested the driver, a 39-year old man Mexican national from Nogales, Sonora.

He was handed over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations and the vehicle and drugs were seized.

This is the second large seizure within the last two weeks.

Officers intercepted a similar smuggling attempt on Oct. 24, when officers working at the port seized 4,661 pounds of marijuana worth more than $2.3 million hidden in a tractor-trailer full of electronics.