HOUSTON, Texas — Late last week, San Diego-based Border Patrol agents arrested a Mexican who was carrying $166,000 worth of “China White” heroin. The drugs were hidden inside the battery of the man’s vehicle.
The suspect, a 30-year-old male, was attempting to drive through the San Clemente checkpoint at the time of his apprehension. According to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the man “piggy-backed to the car in front of him as it cleared primary; he then accelerated and attempted to bypass the inspecting agent.”
Noticing the man’s suspicious behavior, agents stopped him to perform a secondary inspection on his vehicle.
After noticing “fresh glue” on the man’s battery casing, agents opened it up and found the China White heroin. The drugs weighed more than eight pounds and were being stored in six bundles, CBP reported.
Breitbart Texas made multiple attempts to reach out to CBP’s San Diego Sector via phone; such phone calls were not immediately returned.
China White heroin, or Acetyl Fentanyl, is a relatively new drug that consists of heroin mixed with Fentanyl. The substance can be five times more potent than normal heroin, and has already caused numerous deaths around the United States.
Hard narcotics — which include drugs such as heroin and cocaine — have been increasingly making their way to the the southern U.S. border from Mexico. A CBP spokesperson based in Laredo, Texas recently told Breitbart Texas, “We have seen increases in hard narcotics. This includes cocaine, meth, and heroin.”
The increase in such busts is clear along Texas’ southern border; in just one weekend this September, Border Patrol agents in Laredo seized $3 million in hard narcotics. $1.2 million of the drugs, weighing 38 pounds, were seized from a vehicle being driven by a Mexican national.
Follow Kristin Tate @KristinBTate.