Border Agents In California Find Shipment Of Cocaine, Meth Hidden In Tractor Trailer Frame

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Smugglers get busted so often trying to hide their illegal drugs and money inside parts of cars and trucks it make one wonder if they are ever actually successful at pulling it off.

Last week, it was someone trying to smuggle three-quarters of a million dollars into the United States by stuffing it inside the spare tire of a pickup truck.

Not too long before that, United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers found $1.6 million worth of numerous drugs hidden inside a 2006 Ford.

And now, just last week, CBP officers at the Calexico Port Cargo Facility pulled over a 47-year-old man driving an empty tractor trailer into the United States from Mexico and found cocaine and methamphetamine concealed within the frame of the truck.

“During secondary inspection, non-intrusive scanning technology was used to perform a thorough scan of the truck,” reads a CBP press release. “Irregularities within the frame were detected. A cursory inspection was conducted which led to the discovery of a non-factory compartment within the frame.”

Inside that non-factory compartment the officers found 148.28 pounds of cocaine and 12.08 pounds of methamphetamine and the driver was turned over to the custody of Homeland Security Investigations for further investigation.

US Customs and Border Protection

“Our dedicated CBP officers used their keen instincts and thorough inspection techniques to uncover these dangerous narcotics hidden in a non-factory compartment of the trailer frame,” said Roque Caza, Port Director for the Area Port of Calexico. “This significant seizure exemplifies our proactive approach in our border protection measures while ensuring the smooth facilitation of lawful trade and travel.”

Another example of this type of attempted sneakiness occurred in San Juan, Puerto Rico when 183 bricks containing 450 pounds of cocaine worth approximately $4 million concealed within a container chassis trying to pass into the country from the Dominican Republic.

Meanwhile, over at the Otay Mesa Port of Entry in California, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers found 4.62 pounds of fentanyl powder, 7.71 pounds of black tar heroin, 2.46 pounds of brown powder heroin, and 2.11 pounds of cocaine concealed within the muffler of another vehicle.

Both of the Calexico and Otay Mesa seizures were part of Operation Apollo, which in June resulted in two major drug seizures – $5.1 million worth of methamphetamine hidden inside a shipment of cucumbers and bell peppers and almost a million dollars worth of meth hidden inside a truck filled with wooden furniture cabinets.