see also: in April 2008:   U. S. Customs and Border Protection Seizes $1.3 Million Worth of Counterfeit Cigarettes   Border Patrol Launches Rhode Island Search   Border Patrol Agent Search Launches in Atlanta   Two Weeks = Two Tons of Marijuana Seized at Arizona Port of Entry   CBP Officers in Texas Find $3 Million Worth of Dope in 'Empty' Sea Container   New Jersey CBP Officers Make $4 Million Heroin Candy Bar Bust   Border Patrol Agents Locate More Than Half Ton of Marijuana ...more on cbp.gov:   CBP News Releases   Press Officers

contacts for this news release

Laredo, Texas – Border Patrol agents from the Laredo North station seized more than three tons of marijuana at the Interstate Highway 35 checkpoint Monday night.

A Border Patrol canine alerted agents to a tractor trailer that drove into the facility for an immigration inspection. Agents opened the trailer and saw several cellophane wrapped bundles stacked to the ceiling. The bundles were inconsistent with the other cargo in the trailer.

Agents examined the bundles and discovered that they contained marijuana. Agents seized 111 bundles of marijuana with a total weight of 6,389.8 pounds and an approximate street value of $5,111,840.

The driver, the marijuana and the truck were turned over the Drug Enforcement Administration.

To report suspicious activity such as drug and/or alien smuggling, contact the Laredo Sector Border Patrol toll free telephone number at 1-800-343-1994.

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.