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A routine Customs and Border Protection (CBP) inspection of a commercial truck last Tuesday became the most recent in a string of drug apprehensions when officers discovered $8.1 million worth of methamphetamine disguised as a shipment of tiles.
The apprehension is an example of the many ways smugglers attempt to bring narcotics across the U.S. border and sparked praise from officials for CBP’s operations.
“As this significant seizure aptly illustrates, CBP officers work tirelessly to ensure that commerce flows and hard narcotics are stopped in their tracks,” Port Director Carlos Rodriguez said in a statement.
CBP officials were first alerted to the contents during a canine unit screening.
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Upon further inspection, CBP officers discovered packets of white powder contained within the pallets of tile, unveiling a haul with an estimated street value of $8,119,696. Officers extracted 200 packages with a combined weight of 908.30 pounds.
The apprehension is just one of many such seizures that smugglers have tried to bring over into the U.S., posing as some other product.
In February, CBP detained a truckload of “roses” concealing over 515 pounds of cocaine.
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More recently, on April 2, CBP reported seizing 298 pounds of cocaine worth roughly $2.6 million in another commercial truck allegedly carrying carrots.
Just two weeks later, CBP announced they had stopped 1,002 pounds of cocaine worth up to $8.9 million masquerading as a shipment of chayote — a type of squash native to Mexico.
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Officials called the seizures a fulfillment of President Donald Trump’s promises to secure the U.S. Southern Border against drug cartels and narcotraffickers.
“Fulfilling President Donald J. Trump’s mandate, the Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Customs and Border Protection, under the leadership of DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin, have delivered the most secure border in history, stopping dangerous criminal aliens and illicit narcotics from entering our communities, which will keep America safe for generations to come,” CBP said in a press release.
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