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Wellton, Ariz. – U.S. Border Patrol agents assigned to Yuma Sector seized 799 pounds of marijuana in the desert east of Wellton, Ariz., early Sunday morning.

On March 8, at about 3 a.m., agents assigned to Wellton Station’s forward operating base, Camp Grip with assistance from a CBP Air and Marine helicopter found an all terrain vehicle hidden under some brush. Upon closer inspection it was discovered that the ATV had a utility trailer in tow which was loaded with bundles of marijuana. The vehicle illegally entered the United States in the Cabeza Prieta Wildlife Refuge east of Wellton, Ariz.

The two smugglers absconded from the vehicle and fled as agents closed in. The responding agents tracked their footprints towards the Sierra Pinta Mountains and were able to successfully apprehend the subjects.

The marijuana weighed a total of 799 pounds with an estimated value of $639,000. The two subjects, ATV, utility trailer and marijuana were all turned over to the Drug Enforcement Administration.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control and protection of our nation's borders at and between the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.