U.S. Customs and Border Protection on Tuesday announced the seizure of more than $5 million worth of methamphetamine disguised as a shipment of watermelons into California last week.
The agency said officers at the Otay Mesa Commercial Facility in San Diego encountered a 29-year-old man driving a commercial tractor-trailer from Mexico into the U.S. last Friday with a shipment manifested as watermelons. The man, the truck and the cargo were referred to a secondary inspection area for further examination.
Officers discovered 1,220 paper-wrapped packages disguised to look like watermelons. The packages were tested and identified as methamphetamine.
CBP said a total of 4,587 pounds of methamphetamine were seized, with an estimated street value of more than $5 million. The driver was turned over to Homeland Security Investigations.
"I am incredibly proud of our team for their exceptional work over the past few weeks in uncovering sophisticated and diverse smuggling methods," Rosa E. Hernandez, Port Director for the Area Port of Otay Mesa, said in a statement. "As drug cartels continue to evolve their smuggling techniques, we will continue finding new and better ways to prevent these dangerous drugs and other contraband from entering the country."
--with reporting by TMX
