see also: in December 2002:   U.S. Customs Opens Trade Fastlanes!   U.S. Customs Sees Dramatic Rise in Cocaine Seizures Along Southwest Border   Statement from U. S. Customs Service Commissioner Robert C. Bonner Regarding Today's Announcement by the European Commission*   U.S. Customs Inspectors at Nogales Port of Entry Seize 1,395 Pounds of Marijuana   U.S. Customs Inspectors in South Texas Seize $7.5 Million in Narcotics, $328,392 in Cash This Week   U.S. Customs Seizes $1.1 Million in Marijuana at Laredo's Colombia-Solidarity Bridge ...more

contacts for this news release

OTAY MESA--U.S. Customs Service inspectors working at the Port of Otay Mesa cargo facility on Friday evening seized almost 8,600 pounds of marijuana from a tractor trailer truck that entered the United States with a load of produce, officials announced today.

The seizure was made at around 6:30 p.m. on December 13 after inspectors noticed anomalies during a x-ray examination of the California-plated conveyance, officials said.

A Customs narcotics detector dog alerted to the cargo of Pasilla peppers and cucumbers after the boxes of produce were unloaded during a subsequent secondary examination.

Inspectors discovered 974 wrapped packages of marijuana weighing 8,596 pounds and valued at over $3.9 million commingled with the produce.

The driver, 55-year old Luis Gomez-Granillo, a Mexican resident residing in San Diego, was arrested by U.S. Customs special agents and subsequently transported to the Metropolitan Correctional Center, officials said.