TUCSON – U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at Arizona’s Port of Lukeville arrested three people after finding $346,000 worth of marijuana from separate seizures.
Officers referred a 23-year-old Phoenix woman driving a Chevy truck towing a boat, for further inspection. During questioning, the truck’s passenger, a 32-year-old woman from Leveen, Arizona, stated that the vehicle, boat and contents belonged to her. Upon further inspection with a CBP narcotics-detection canine, officers found nearly 600 pounds of marijuana, worth more than $288,000, in the boat.
While working a joint operation with Alliance to Combat Transnational Threats (ACTT) partners, officers referred a 20-year-old Mexican woman for further inspection of her Ford SUV and, again working with a canine team, found nearly 115 pounds of marijuana worth $58,000.
Officers seized the drugs and vehicles, while the subjects were turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
Federal law allows officers to charge individuals by complaint, a method that allows the filing of charges for criminal activity without inferring guilt. An individual is presumed innocent unless and until competent evidence is presented to a jury that establishes guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
CBP’s Office of Field Operations is the primary organization within Homeland Security tasked with an anti-terrorism mission at our nation’s ports. CBP officers screen all people, vehicles and goods entering the United States while facilitating the flow of legitimate trade and travel. Their mission also includes carrying out border-related duties, including narcotics interdiction, enforcing immigration and trade laws, and protecting the nation’s food supply and agriculture industry from pests and diseases.
