TUCSON – U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers in Nogales, Arizona seized more than 2 tons of marijuana found in two commercial shipments within the last few days of February.
CBP officers working with a narcotics-detection canine at the Mariposa Commercial Facility on Feb 25 discovered nearly 1,700 pounds of marijuana, worth an estimated $838,000. Officers located the marijuana in the roof area of a tractor-trailer loaded with corn.
Officers at the same facility, also working with a narcotics-detection canine, seized an even larger load of marijuana on Feb 28, worth almost $1.5 million. While officers were inspecting the contents of a box truck, they found 125 bundles of marijuana with a combined weight exceeding 2,900 pounds.
Officers seized the drugs, vehicles and commodities. Both drivers, identified as Mexican nationals, were arrested and 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.
