Nearly 80 pounds of meth seized at checkpoint, worth over $200K
Agents say K-9 detection team played a crucial role
SALTON CITY, Calif. (KYMA, KECY) - The U.S. Border Patrol confirms the recent arrest of a U.S. citizen whom is accused of smuggling methamphetamine through an immigration checkpoint Saturday morning.
El Centro Sector agents say the it began at about 9:05 a.m. when the suspect, 55, drove up to the Highway 86 checkpoint in a blue 2005 Ford Escape.
An agent referred the 55-year-old to secondary inspection, where a K-9 detection team alerted to both the driver and passenger sides of the car.
While inspecting the Ford Escape, Border Patrol found a hidden compartment in the floorboard hiding 41 packages of methamphetamine.
Agents calculate the total amount as 78.41 pounds of methamphetamine, with an estimated value of $215,627.
Border Patrol turned the perpetrator, car and drugs over to the Drug Enforcement Administration.
