U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents at two border crossings south of San Diego stopped nearly 40 gallons of liquid methamphetamine from being smuggled into the United States inside trailers last weekend, the agency said Wednesday.
In both instances, groups of travelers were riding in SUVs with trailers in tow when they were stopped and searched on Sunday. In each, CBP found millions of dollars worth of the illicit drug near the trailers' water tanks.
The first stop was made at about 8 p.m. at the Otay Mesa Port of Entry. CBP officers searched the truck and noticed a strange liquid in the trailer's water tank, which they determined to be about 110 gallons of liquid meth estimated to be worth $1.54 million, the agency said.
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Just over an hour later and less than 10 miles away, CBP officers encountered nearly the exact situation. An SUV towing a trailer with suspicious "tampering" was stopped at the San Ysidro Port of Entry at about 9:15 p.m. A canine searched the vehicle and pointed officers to the trailer's water tank. In it was about 80 gallons of liquid methamphetamine with a street value of about $1.16 million, CBP said.
In both stops, the vehicle's occupants had "valid state-issued IDs," according to CBP, but it was not clear if they were U.S. residents or migrants.
The first group of travelers included two men, ages 56 and 61, and two women, ages 47 and 61. The second set was a group of young men, ages 18, 21 and 22. CBP said all were transferred to ICE for processing but their status from there was not known.
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A CBP spokesperson said smugglers will recruit anyone with the ability to cross the border, including minors who they deceive into thinking they will receive lesser offenses because they are not adults.
CBP Director for San Diego's field office Jennifer De La O said smugglers will often take advantage of the busy holiday season to sneak in drugs. She credited CBP for intercepting the two attempts on Sunday.
