see also: in January 2007 News Releases:   Membership of Trade/Customs Advisory Committee Announced   CBP Border Patrol Launches Massive Search to Preserve Life   CBP Officers Make 22 Drug Busts at Calexico Ports During Busy Week   3,010 Pounds of Marijuana Seized at Nogales Port of Entry   CBP Border Patrol Makes a Record Drug Bust   Registration Underway for Third CBP Conference on ACE   CBP Officers Nab Mother/Daughter Cocaine Smugglers; Juveniles With Marijuana Loads Also Nabbed This Week ...more on cbp.gov:   CBP News Releases   Press Officers

contacts for this news release

Tucson, Ariz – In the last four days, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Officers at ports of entry in Arizona stopped 60 different attempts at smuggling contraband into the United States, apprehended 18 fugitives, and stopped seven attempts by people to enter illegally.

The largest narcotics seizure happened on January 7 at around 5:30 PM at the Lukeville port of entry. CBP Officers screening travelers and vehicles entering the United States were questioning a 39-year-old man and noticed nervous behavior when he answered their questions, so they decided to inspect the Dodge pickup and trailer he was towing. During the inspection of the trailer, the officers noticed discrepancies in the way the trailer was put together. Using the Vehicle And Container Inspection System (VACIS) to further look at the structure of the trailer without harming it, they noticed anomalies in the front of the trailer. When they dismantled it, 216 bundles of marijuana were found inside the walls. The driver and his passenger, a 32-year-old woman (both from Yuma) were arrested and the 1,017 pounds of marijuana, truck, and trailer were seized and turned over to the Pima County Sheriff’s Office for investigation and prosecution.

At other ports of entry this weekend, CBP officers at the Nogales port of entry arrested a 23-year-old woman and 32-year-old man (both from Hermosillo) after discovering 60 pounds of cocaine hidden inside a Ford Fusion she was driving and a 34-year-old woman from Cajeme, MX after discovering 50 pounds of marijuana hidden inside the gas tank and spare tire of a Mazda pickup she was driving. At the Douglas port of entry, CBP officers arrested a 29-year-old man from Chihuahua after finding more than 200 pounds of marijuana hidden inside the floor of a 1994 Ford Explorer he was driving, and a 22-year-old woman from Agua Prieta after finding 125 pounds of marijuana hidden inside the tires of a 1990 GMC pickup she was driving.

The most frequent contraband interceptions involved people attempting to smuggle prohibited agricultural items into the United States. CBP Agriculture Specialists at the Nogales port of entry stopped 49 attempts at smuggling a variety of items this weekend and collected $11,850 in fines. The seized items included mangos, apples, oranges, pork products (such as ham or chorizo), tangerines, sugarcane, plants, soil, sweet limes, guavas, citrus flowers, nanches, manzano peppers, pears, pummelos, and even raw chicken heads. They also stopped several attempts to smuggle birds into the country.

CBP Officers apprehended 18 fugitives from around the country this weekend. The most significant apprehensions included a woman wanted in Wisconsin on charges of escape, a man wanted in California on charges of manufacturing a controlled substance, a man wanted in California for a parole violation, and a man wanted in Arizona on fraud charges.

CBP officers also stopped seven people trying to enter the country with fraudulent documents or trying to smuggle others into the country, penalized one person trying to smuggle steroids, seized counterfeit money orders and cashiers checks in the amount of $12,200, and stopped several other attempts to smuggle small quantities of illicit drugs into the United States.

The Office of Field Operations is responsible for securing our borders at the ports of entry. U.S. Customs and Border Protection Officers’ primary mission is anti-terrorism; they screen all people, vehicles, and goods entering the United States, while facilitating the flow of legitimate trade and travel into and out of the United States. Their mission also includes carrying out traditional border-related responsibilities, including narcotics interdiction, enforcing immigration law, and protecting the nation’s food supply and agriculture industry from pests and diseases.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) 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.