Traffic stop reveals nearly 12-pounds of heroin

Border Patrol K-9 sniffs out cache of drugs

TEMECULA, Calif. (KYMA, KECY) - A traffic stop near Temecula leads to the discovery of nearly 12-pounds of heroin with a street value of more than $121,000.

Border Patrol agents say the case started when they pulled over a car around 9:15 Wednesday morning on northbound I-15 and Highway 76. Agents say a drug-sniffing dog alerted them to the stash of drugs.

A search of the car revealed five bundles hidden in the vehicle's center console. Agents say those bundles tested positive for heroin. They had a combined weight of 11.68 pounds, and an estimated street value of $121,900.

Agents arrested the driver and his passenger. Both men were U.S. citizens. Border Patrol turned over the drugs and the suspects to the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA.)

Since October of 2019, San Diego Sector Border Patrol agents have seized nearly 2,200-pounds of narcotics with a street value of more than $10,000,000.