Nearly 170 pounds of methamphetamine was seized at the San Ysidro border crossing Tuesday, Customs and Border Protection announced Thursday.
A permanent U.S. resident crossing the border from Tijuana was arrested and turned over to Homeland Security when agents found the drugs hidden in the doors, seats, quarter panels and bumper of the man’s car, according to the CBP.
The arrest was the latest in a string of drug seizures since Friday.
From Friday through Tuesday, Border Patrol agents seized 625 pounds of drugs worth $2.7 million along the six land Port of Entries from San Ysidro to Calexico, CBP spokesman Shalene Thomas said.
“In addition to dealing with the arrival of a large caravan of migrants and the processing of asylum claims, CBP officers within the San Diego Field Office continue to seize narcotics and arrest wanted individuals all while performing their traditional duties of processing lawful trade and travel,” CBP San Diego director of field operations Pete Flores said.
Agents seized nearly 580 pounds of methamphetamine, five pounds of cocaine and approximately 26 pounds of heroin and 17 pounds of fentanyl in the five-day operation. The drugs were strapped to smugglers’ bodies and hidden in various areas of the vehicles such as the gas tank, trunk, seats and quarter panels, according to the CBP.
In total, 39 people were arrested, 10 for suspected smuggling attempts, 15 for suspected human smuggling and 14 for a variety of crimes, including auto theft, the CBP reported.
