WASHINGTON: U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the Peace Bridge port of entry apprehended a stolen vehicle after it failed to stop at the primary inspection lane. Officers stopped the vehicle before it exited the plaza. The driver was arrested and turned over with the stolen vehicle to the Buffalo Police Department. On Saturday, CBP officers working at the Peace Bridge encountered a vehicle with New York plates after it turned around on PPeace Bridge Port of Entry at Buffalo, New Yorkeace Bridge. As the vehicle entered the primary inspection lane, it failed to stop, and continued through the plaza.
CBP officers apprehended the driver and vehicle before they left the plaza. System records revealed that the vehicle was reported stolen earlier in the day in Buffalo, and already had been entered in the National Crime Information Center to alert law enforcement if it was encountered. The driver, Luis Cruz Figueroa, age 33, a male U.S. citizen, was arrested and turned over to the Buffalo Police Department along with the stolen vehicle. “Our officers did an excellent job safely preventing this driver from fleeing and recovering a stolen vehicle,” said Acting Port Director Cary Frieling. “Our officers are constantly on the lookout for criminal activity and are always working to protect our communities.” NCIC is a centralized automated database designed to share information among law enforcement agencies including outstanding warrants for a wide range of offenses. Based on information from NCIC, CBP officers have made previous arrests of individuals wanted for crimes including homicide, escape, money laundering, robbery, narcotics distribution, child sexual abuse, fraud, larceny, and military desertion.
