Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents uncovered a massive drug haul of blue fentanyl pills that may be worth more than $11 million stashed in a vehicle in California.
Officers discovered 122 pounds of narcotics concealed within the vehicle’s quarter panel during a routine inspection at the Calexico West Port of Entry on Oct. 9, the agency said in a statement dated yesterday.
The estimated street value of the drugs is thought to be about $11 million based on a previous 123.6-pound discovery of blue fentanyl pills in March. Newsweek contacted the CBP to confirm the estimated value of the drugs.
During the initial inspection, which involved a CBP K-9 sniffer dog unit, officers discovered the packages and referred the driver and the vehicle for further examination. A 47-year-old man was then taken into custody, suspected of attempting to smuggle the drugs into the United States from Mexico.
CBP agents confiscated a massive drug haul of blue fentanyl pills that may be worth about $11 million. They were stashed throughout a vehicle in California.
Getty/CBP
CBP officers uncovered a total of 98 packages concealed within the vehicle’s quarter panels and back headrest. The substance tested positive for fentanyl, according to CBP.
Homeland Security Investigations has launched a full investigation into the matter, and inquiries remain ongoing.
“This fentanyl pill seizure is a big win in our fight against the opioid crisis,” Roque Caza, area port director of Calexico, said in the statement. “Every pill off the streets is a life potentially saved. I commend our hardworking CBP officers and law enforcement partners for keeping our communities safe.”
The latest drug bust is part of ongoing CBP efforts to intercept and prevent the trafficking of illicit narcotics into the country.
Terri Beth Miller, senior editor at Rehab.com, told Newsweek that the CBP “urgently” needs more personnel to deal with the “surge” of drugs flowing through the southern border.
“Fentanyl is infiltrating communities across the U.S. No city, state, or region is immune. However, the overwhelming majority of fentanyl seizures, more than 95%, occur at the southwestern border of the U.S.
“Though illegal border crossings are often blamed for the surge of fentanyl into the US, the reality is that fentanyl is most commonly smuggled into the U.S. through legal ports of entry.
“This speaks to the urgent need for more DEA, Customs and Border Patrol resources at the southern border. A surge of law enforcement personnel, border agents and drug interdiction technologies is desperately needed.”
Immigration and border security are key issues in the run-up to the 2024 presidential election, as both Republicans and Democrats want to see curbs on migration.
According to a poll by Gallup, 55 percent of respondents who back Donald Trump‘s calls for curbs wanted to see immigration levels decrease.
A slight majority of respondents back Trump’s flagship border wall policy from 2016, as 53% support significantly expanding the construction of walls along the U.S.-Mexico border, up 13 points since 2019.
In an Economist/YouGov poll conducted in August, former president Trump led Vice President Kamala Harris by 51 points among adults who said immigration was “very important” to them—with 83 percent saying they planned to back Trump compared to 32 percent who said they would vote for Harris.
Polling by Redfield and Wilton Strategies shows that 47 percent of respondents trust Trump on immigration compared to 36 percent who trust Harris. That is a gap that has been closing in recent weeks, as border crossings have fallen sharply in the aftermath of President Joe Biden‘s executive order limiting asylum claims.
