U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers were back at it again, making another huge bust and arresting someone trying to smuggle drugs into the country.
On Sunday, CBP agents at the San Ysidro Port of Entry near San Diego seized over $11 million worth of blue fentanyl pills hidden inside a vehicle’s dashboard and seats.
At approximately 8:20 p.m. local time, a 37-year-old man driving a 2008 sedan attempted to enter the United States from Mexico at the San Ysidro POE, according to a Customs and Border Protection press release.
During pre-primary inspections of his vehicle, a CBP K-9 unit “alerted officers to the glove compartment area, indicating the possible presence of narcotics.”
“In the secondary inspection area, CBP officers extracted a total of 100 packages containing blue pills concealed within the vehicle’s dashboard and within the front passenger seats,” Customs and Border Protection announced.
“The contents of the packages were tested and identified as fentanyl. An estimated 561,000 pills were ultimately discovered, with a total weight of 123.6 pounds, and an approximate street value of $11,220,000.”
Pills That Kill! ☠️🚨☠️
.@CBP at the #SYSPOE seized over $11 million worth of blue fentanyl pills concealed in a vehicle last Sunday.
Read more here: https://t.co/R9gj7BHvSC pic.twitter.com/C2YePwGT9D
— Director of Field Operations Sidney Aki (@DFOSanDiegoCA) March 1, 2024
“Fentanyl is a very lethal drug that continues to be encountered along our southern border,” said Mariza Marin, Port Director for the San Ysidro Port of Entry. “I’m very proud of the exceptional work by our officers who skillfully interdict illicit narcotics on a daily basis.”
This seizure was part of Operation Apollo, a joint regional operation comprised of federal, state, and local agencies “working to combat the threat from fentanyl, and other illicit synthetic narcotics.”
This seizure adds to the ever-growing total of illegal drugs that have been seized by the San Diego Customs and Border Protection Field Office.
In the week prior to the $11 million fentanyl bust, CBP officers from the San Diego Field Office ports of entry seized an estimated $9,119,500 worth of narcotics including 554 pounds of cocaine, 229 pounds of fentanyl, and 1,650 pounds of methamphetamine, in 42 separate smuggling attempts.