Yuma News Now

San Luis, Arizizona - United States Customs and Border Protection officers maintained their strong enforcement presence when a total of 137 pounds of marijuana were seized in two smuggling attempts and four impostors were arrested, all within 24 hours this past Sunday and Monday.

“These seizures demonstrate the dedication and motivation of our officers. The smuggling community is always trying to push their illegal merchandise through and we are here to make sure it does not make it in,” said CBP Port Director William K. Brooks.

On May 31, at approximately 8:25 p.m., an 18-year-old U. S. citizen man applied for entry into the U.S. while driving a 1993 Honda Accord. A CBP officer processing travelers coming from Mexico referred the man to the vehicle secondary lot after he noticed discrepancies with the vehicle and inconsistencies with the answers to routine questions.

Once in secondary, the CBP officers, assisted by a narcotics detector dog, conducted an inspection and found the vehicle to contain marijuana hidden within the rear quarter panels. A total of 26 packages were removed with a weight of more than 56 pounds.

The man was immediately arrested and turned over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement for further investigation, but presented to the state for prosecution.

That same day, at approximately 10:40 p.m., a 55-year-old U.S. citizen woman applied for entry into the U.S. while driving a 1998 Jeep Cherokee SUV. A CBP officer processing travelers coming from Mexico referred the woman to the vehicle secondary lot due to discrepancies with the vehicle and her answers to questions.

Once in secondary the CBP officers conducted an inspection, assisted by a narcotics detector dog, and found the SUV to contain marijuana hidden within the spare tire and gas tank. A total of 33 packages were removed with a weight of more than 81 pounds.

The woman was immediately arrested and turned over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement for further investigation, but presented to the state for prosecution.

Total estimated street value of the marijuana is about $265.000.

On June 1, at approximately 8:45 a.m., four persons applying for admission at the pedestrian walkway were referred to Pedestrian Secondary as possible impostors to fraudulent documents. After a brief interview of each applicant, CBP officers determined that all four persons were impostors attempting to enter the United States illegally, by presenting traveling documents not legally issued to them. All four persons, of adult age, were processed for illegal entry and will be presented for criminal prosecution before the U.S. Magistrate in Federal Court at Yuma, Ariz.