As parts of the south experience an uptick in coronavirus cases, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents continue to thwart smuggling events along the southern border.
Agents arrested three backpackers in the Arizona desert late Tuesday night near Dateland. When agents approached the individuals, the group dropped makeshift backpacks filled with nearly 80 pounds of methamphetamine. The individuals were determined to be Mexican nationals illegally present in the U.S. Agents seized the narcotics, which carry an estimated street value of over $158,000, according to CBP. The three Mexican nationals were referred for criminal prosecution.
Photo via U.S. Customs and Border Protection
CBP agents assigned to the Calexico Station in California responded to a smuggling incident on Thursday morning. A surveillance operator notified agents that packages were being tossed over the International Border wall between Mexico and the U.S.
A responding agent found three packages and transported the items to the Calexico Border Patrol Station for further processing. The packages tested positive for methamphetamine, and 2.48 pounds of narcotics were discovered inside. The drugs have an estimated street value of $4,712, according to CBP.
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Photo via U.S. Customs and Border Protection
And agents in Texas thwarted two smuggling attempts that resulted in the seizure of 345 lbs of marijuana.
Ten subjects carrying bundles of contraband were observed near Escobares, Texas, on Thursday morning. When the subjects noticed the approaching agents, the subjects took off towards the Rio Grande River and swam back to Mexico. The bundles of marijuana weighed 230 lbs and carried an estimated street value of $276,000, according to CBP.
On Wednesday night, agents observed several individuals loading bundles of narcotics into a vehicle near Roma, Texas. When agents responded to the location, they found the vehicle abandoned and 115 lbs of marijuana left inside.
"Even with the spread of the COVID-19 virus, human smugglers continue to try these brazen attempts with zero regard for the lives they endanger nor to the health of the citizens of our great nation," CBP wrote in a statement. "The U.S. Border Patrol agents of the Rio Grande Valley Sector will continue to safeguard the nation and community against these criminal elements."
On a typical day in 2019, CBP disrupted or seized an average of 3,707 pounds of narcotics. CBP employed 61,506 men and women in 2019, including 19,648 Border Patrol agents and 24,511 CBP officers.
