CALEXICO: U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the Calexico East commercial facility halted an attempt to smuggle 220 pounds of marijuana hidden within the wooden pallets of a shipment of soft drinks.
The incident occurred shortly after 7 p.m., when CBP officers encountered a 2000 Freightliner tractor pulling a trailer that entered the cargo facility carrying a manifested shipment of soft drinks. Officers referred the truck to the dock for a more in-depth examination.260 packages of marijuana pulled out of pallets stacked with soda bottles.
During a dockside inspection of the conveyance, an officer noticed what appeared to be a package within one of the wooden pallets that held the soft drinks. Further examination led officers to the discovery of 260 wrapped bundles concealed within the pallets of the merchandise.
The bundles field-tested positive for marijuana and have a street value of approximately $88,000.
The driver, a 37-year-old male Mexican citizen and resident of Mexicali, Baja California, was turned over to the custody of Homeland Security Investigation agents for further processing.
CBP seized the marijuana, the tractor and trailer.
