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$3.3 million worth of meth ‘disguised as onion chives’ seized from semi truck at California border crossing

Published:

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers in Otey Mesa, California, recently seized more than 1500 pounds of methamphetamine from a commercial vehicle’s produce shipment.

At 1:30 p.m. on October 20, 2022, a  28 year old male truck driver entered the Otay Mesa Commercial Facility with a shipment manifested for green onions.

The truck was referred for a closer inspection.

From CBP:

During the exam, CBP officers discovered a package disguised as onion chives concealed deep in the middle of the pallet of the green onions. CBP officers searched the shipment and removed 183 packages containing methamphetamine hidden within the shipment of green onions.

In total, CBP seized 1,528.99 pounds of methamphetamine. The estimated street value of the seized drugs is $3.3 million.

The truck driver was arrested on suspicious of drug smuggling and handed over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

The truck and trailer were also seized by CBP.

“CBP officers are the front-line of stopping these dangerous drugs from entering the U.S.,” said Jennifer De La O, CBP Director of Field Operations for the San Diego Field Office. “The lengths drug trafficking organizations are willing to go to conceal and smuggle narcotics is a testament to how effective our officers are.”

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