Los Angeles.- The Office of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) reported today Friday that its agents discovered nearly 1,200 small packages of methamphetamine hidden inside a shipment of onions that was inspected at a port of entry in California.
The discovery came last Sunday when a tractor-trailer loaded with onions was inspected at the Otay Mesa port of entry. Upon arrival at the inspection facility, the driver, a 46-year-old Mexican man told CBP agents he was bringing a shipment of onionsbut was sent for a second review.
Trained CBP dogs searched the truck and trailer and flagged the cargo. CBP officers searched the shipment and discovered 1,197 packages of methamphetamine among the onions.
packages of methamphetamine were shaped like small balloons with a white shell, designed to blend in with onions among which they were hidden, CBP detailed in a statement.
In all, agents found 1,336 pounds (606 kilos) of methamphetamine with an estimated street value of about $2.9 million.
Sidney Aki, director of operations for CBP in San Diego, California, said “not only was this a clever attempt at trying to smuggle narcotics, one I hadn’t seen before, but it also took a long time to wrap the narcotics in these little packages. , designed to look like onions.
He added that the level of work to hide the drug is a reflection of how far drug trafficking organizations are willing to go when trying to smuggle narcotics into the United States.
The driver was arrested for the alleged attempt to smuggle drugs.
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