Mass Meth Bust at Otay Mesa Border

U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers seized more than 3,000 pounds of methamphetamine from a cargo trailer at the Otay Mesa Commercial Facility in San Diego County. (cbp.gov) The agency said the seizure happened April 14, when officers referred a 2017 Freightliner Cascadia tractor-trailer and its 31-year-old Mexican citizen driver to secondary inspection. (cbp.gov) The shipment manifest listed the cargo as corrugated cardboard boxes. Officers instead found 3,001.5 pounds of crystal methamphetamine concealed inside the trailer. (cbp.gov) Customs and Border Protection valued the drugs at $4,924,960. The agency said the tractor, trailer and narcotics were seized, and Homeland Security Investigations took custody of the driver for further processing. (cbp.gov) (nbcsandiego.com) Otay Mesa is one of the busiest commercial border crossings in the region, and the seizure adds to a string of April drug interceptions there. On April 7 and April 8, officers at the port seized more than 430 pounds of cocaine and methamphetamine in two separate cases worth a combined $2.8 million. (cbp.gov) Customs and Border Protection says officers used layered screening methods in those earlier April cases, including imaging systems and canine teams, to detect drugs hidden in vehicles. The agency did not detail the detection method used in the 3,001.5-pound meth seizure. (cbp.gov 1) (cbp.gov 2) The April 14 case was announced publicly on April 22 in a national media release. Otay Mesa Port Director Rosa E. Hernandez said officers remain focused on stopping dangerous drugs while processing lawful trade and travel. (cbp.gov) The latest bust turned a cargo load declared as cardboard into one of the month’s largest meth seizures at Otay Mesa. Federal investigators now control the driver and the case. (cbp.gov)