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CALEXICO, Calif., — CBP officers from the Calexico Commercial Facility seized more than 646 pounds of methamphetamine concealed within a shipment of green onions last week.
The incident occurred on Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, when CBP officers encountered a 63-year-old male driving a commercial tractor-trailer carrying a shipment manifested for green onions. The driver, a valid border crossing cardholder, was referred for further inspection.
In the secondary inspection area, a CBP K-9 unit screened the shipment and alerted officers to examine the trailer more closely.
CBP officers conducted a physical examination of the tractor-trailer’s floor and discovered 608 packages hidden within the shipment of green onions. The contents of the packages were tested and identified as methamphetamine with a weight of 646.61 pounds and an estimated street value of $775,000.
“This is truly an outstanding demonstration of our officer’s ability to think outside of the box and further exemplifies our adaptability to find illicit contraband no matter where narcotics are hidden,” said Roque Caza, Port Director for the Area Port of Calexico.
CBP officers seized the narcotics and commercial tractor-trailer while the driver was turned over to Homeland Security Investigations for further investigation.
This seizure is the result of Operation Apollo, a holistic counter-fentanyl effort that began on Oct. 26, 2023, in southern California, and expanded to Arizona on April 10, 2024. Operation Apollo focuses on intelligence collection and partnerships, and utilizes local CBP field assets augmented by federal, state, local, tribal, and territorial partners to boost resources, increase collaboration, and target the smuggling of fentanyl into the United States.
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