see also: in July 2007 News Releases:   CBP Air and Marine Acquires Helicopters for Border Security Mission   CBP Officers At El Paso Port Nab 50 Pounds Of Cocaine; Two Juveniles Taken Into Custody   CBP Border Patrol Agent Dies In the Line of Duty   Hong Kong to Scan U.S.-Bound Goods for Radiation as Part of Secure Freight Initiative   Border Patrol Assists in Third Canal Rescue in a Week   CBP Officers Apprehend Fugitive Wanted For Murder, Rape, Burglary   Operation Streamline Nets 1,200-Plus Prosecutions in Arizona ...more on cbp.gov:   CBP News Releases   Press Officers

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Campo, Calif. — U.S. Customs and Border Protection Border Patrol agents seized two vehicles that were transporting 1,334 pounds of marijuana yesterday worth more than $1 million today near Campo, Calif.

At 8 a.m. July 18 Border Patrol agents working west of Campo observed a Toyota Tacoma and an Isuzu Trooper that were suspected of driving across the international border, traveling eastbound on State Route 94. Agents had linked the vehicles to damaged fencing along the border.

After agents began following the vehicles, both drivers abruptly turned south on Forrest Gate Road and headed toward Mexico. The two vehicles stopped on the dirt road a half-mile from the border, and a single occupant of the Isuzu Trooper jumped into the truck bed of the Toyota Tacoma.

As the Tacoma neared the border fence, three occupants abandoned the moving truck and jumped the border fence into Mexico. The truck continued traveling forward until it rolled into an embankment. Agents discovered 89 bundles of marijuana packed into the two vehicles. The marijuana weighed 1,334 pounds and is worth $1,067,000.

CBP seized the two vehicles and turned over the illicit narcotics to Operation Alliance, a collaborative multi-agency anti-drug task force.

The CBP Border Patrol continues ensuring the safety and security of our nation’s border by preventing dangerous people and illegal narcotics from entering our country between ports of entry. The San Diego Sector Border Patrol has seized 27,897 pounds of marijuana as of June 30, a 32 percent decline from fiscal year 2006 seizures.

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.