Border agents snag 11,000 lbs. of pot in 48 hours

BP is on track for 7th record year in seizures

By Brady McCombs

ARIZONA DAILY STAR

Border Patrol agents seized more than 11,000 pounds of marijuana in the last 48 hours in the Tucson Sector, including three large seizures that totaled more than 5,000 pounds.

On Tuesday, agents patrolling near the village of San Miguel on the Tohono O'odham Nation discovered two sets of vehicle tracks heading north, said a press release from the agency.

One set led to an abandoned Dodge pickup with 56 bundles of marijuana and the other to an abandoned Chevrolet pickup with 57 bundles. The 113 bundles weighed a total of 2,446 pounds, the release said.

The trucks were reported stolen and turned over to the Tohono O'odham Police Department.

That same day on Arizona 83 near Sonoita, an agent noticed a utility truck that had unsecured side compartments.

When the agent approached the vehicle, he smelled marijuana and saw bundles shoved inside the cargo compartments.

They found 54 bundles of marijuana weighing 1,056 pounds inside. The driver, a 39-year-old illegal entrant from Mexico, was arrested.

The truck, which was registered to a Sonoita address, was turned over to the Border Patrol. Agents turned the marijuana over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

The third large seizure occurred close to midnight Tuesday when an agent spotted a GMC pickup loaded with marijuana bundles on Trading Post Road northwest of Casa Grande. When the driver spotted the agent, he fled. He eventually abandoned the truck and ran away.

Agents found nearly 1,954 pounds of marijuana inside the truck. The truck, which was reported stolen out of Glendale, was turned over to Tohono O'odham police.