TUCSON, AZ – Customs and Border Protection officers arrested three Mexican nationals and a Douglas, Arizona resident late last week for separate attempts to smuggle a combination of almost 800 pounds of marijuana through the Raul Hector Castro Port of Douglas.
Officers arrested a 28-year-old woman from Agua Prieta, Sonora, Mexico, on Dec. 8 after a CBP narcotics-detection canine alerted officers to the discovery of more than 190 pounds of marijuana, worth approximately $96,000, in a Ford sedan she was driving.
Officers later referred a 48-year-old Douglas woman for further inspection of her Volkswagen Beetle and, with help from a canine, found 235 pounds of marijuana worth more than $117,000.
Early Dec. 9, officers referred a 43-year-old Mexican man for an additional search of his Chevrolet truck. After a canine alert, officers found 86 pounds of marijuana from throughout the cab and spare tire. The drugs are worth $43,000.
Later in the day, a 41-year-old woman from Esqueda, Sonora, Mexico, was directed for further inspection of her Ford truck where a canine helped officers locate 270 pounds of marijuana, worth $135,000, throughout the vehicle.
Officers seized the drugs and vehicles used in the incidents, and turned over all subjects to 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.
