SAN LUIS: US Customs and Border Protection officers working at the San Luis Port of Entry seized $206,850 in methamphetamine during three incidents.
Officers arrested a 38-year-old local man after a canine alerted inspectors to more than 23 pounds of methamphetamine, worth $70,620, in the doors and behind the rear seat of a 1996 GMC SUV driven by Herman Jesus Chavez.
Officers also arrested a 40 -year-old female U.S. citizen Feb. 13 after a CBP canine alerted officers to the presence of narcotics in her vehicle. Officers found more than 31 pounds of methamphetamine, valued at $93,000, behind the rear seat and in the dashboard area.
CBP officers arrested Jorge Gamez Diaz De Leon, a 24-year old Mexican citizen, for attempting to smuggle nearly 15 pounds of methamphetamine into the U.S. using his 1997 Ford SUV. Officers found four packages of the drug, valued at $43,230, within a compartment inside the vehicle’s gas tank.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations took custody of all suspects.
Federal law allows officers to charge individuals by complaint, a method that allows the filing of charges for criminal activity without inferring guilt. An individual is presumed innocent unless and until competent evidence is presented to a jury that establishes guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
CBP’s Office of Field Operations is the primary organization within Homeland Security tasked with an anti-terrorism mission at our nation’s ports. CBP officers screen all people, vehicles and goods entering the United States while facilitating the flow of legitimate trade and travel. Their mission also includes carrying out border-related duties, including narcotics interdiction, enforcing immigration and trade laws, and protecting the nation’s food supply and agriculture industry from pests and diseases.
