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‘Smuggling Attempt Soured’: Federal Agents In Texas Seize Over $16M Worth Of Meth Hidden In Shipment Of Frozen Mangos

#Crime
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mangos

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There really is nothing that smugglers won’t use to try and hide and/or disguise the drugs they try to bring into America. From hiding them inside the panels of cars to stuffing them in shipments of flowers or food, drug smugglers will try just about anything. Unfortunately for them, quite often it doesn’t work.

Such was the case recently at the World Trade Bridge in Laredo, Texas. It was there that some U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), Office of Field Operations officers made quite a discovery while inspecting what was supposed to be a shipment of frozen mangos.

The seizure occurred last week when a CBP officer referred a tractor-trailer for a secondary inspection. Using a non-intrusive inspection system scan and a canine sweep, CBP officers discovered 733 packages containing 1,790.59 pounds of alleged meth hidden within the shipment.

That little discovery ended up costing drug smugglers approximately $16,006,837 – the street value of the meth that ended up being seized. It also cost them some manpower as Homeland Security Investigations special agents then initiated a criminal investigation into the seizure.

“It is not unusual to encounter hard narcotics co-mingled with fresh produce and our officers employed an effective combination of targeting and high-tech tools to take down this significant methamphetamine load,” said Port Director Alberto Flores, Laredo Port of Entry. “Seizures of hard narcotics on this scale underscore not only the pervasive nature of the drug threat but our steadfast commitment to keeping our border secure.”

Drug smuggler in a Voyager goes for a ride

Just a few days later, CBP officers at the Juarez-Lincoln Bridge in Laredo, Texas encountered yet another not-so-crafty drug smuggler. This time it was a 63-year-old male Mexican citizen attempting to gain entry into the United States in a 2008 Chrysler Voyager.

During secondary examination, using the same tools that caught the meth smuggler a few days earlier, the federal agents found 12 packages of alleged heroin with a combined weight of 29.05 pounds and an estimated street value of $557,237 hidden within the vehicle.

Now, we can add mangos to the list of items including broccoli, squash, peppers, cucumbers, limes, jalapenos, turnips, green onions, watermelons, squash, tomatillos, and lettuce, oh my!

Douglas Charles headshot avatar BroBible
Douglas Charles is a Senior Editor for BroBible with two decades of expertise writing about sports, science, and pop culture with a particular focus on the weird news and events that capture the internet's attention. He is a graduate from the University of Iowa.
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