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El Paso, Texas - U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers working at the Bridge of the Americas commercial cargo facility in El Paso, Texas seized 1,013 pounds of marijuana yesrterday afternoon. The drugs were concealed in a shipment of fans that was being imported from Mexico. The estimated street value of the seized contraband is $810,400.

The seizure marks the second large drug bust at the El Paso cargo facility this week. On Monday, CBP officers seized 4,802 pounds of marijuana. The drugs in that seizure were hidden in a commercial shipment of cardboard boxes.

“CBP officers are working hard using many layers of enforcement to ensure that all shipments entering the U.S. pose no risk to the American community,” said William Molaski, CBP El Paso port director. “The results of this week certainly indicate they are doing a great job.”

The Thursday seizure was made just before noon when a 1989 International Tractor pulling a trailer entered the facility from Mexico. CBP officers selected the vehicle for an X-ray exam and identified discrepancies in the appearance of a shipment of fans. The vehicle was moved to the dock inspection area where a CBP drug sniffing dog alerted to the cargo.

CBP officers opened boxes and discovered that some of the boxes in the shipment contained large bundles of marijuana instead of fans. CBP officers seized 96 marijuana-filled bundles from the shipment.

The El Paso County Sheriff’s Department took custody of the driver and booked him into the El Paso County jail where he remains this morning on a $200,000 bond. He is identified as 35-year-old Saul Alarcon of Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua, Mexico.

While anti-terrorism is the primary mission of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the inspection process at the ports of entry associated with this mission results in impressive numbers of enforcement actions in all categories.

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.