HOUSTON, Texas — Border Patrol agents in Texas’ Del Rio Sector seized more than 1,400 pounds of marijuana during recent weeks. The drug confiscations, which have a total street value of $1.1 million, suggest that drug smuggling is still rife along the Texas-Mexico border.
The largest drug bust occurred on October 20, when agents were patrolling an area known for drug smuggling. They discovered five large sacks that were partially hidden in some brush, according to a press release from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). Upon further inspection, agents discovered 446 pounds of marijuana inside the bags.
The drugs in the five sacks had a total value of $357,360.
Only a few days prior, Border Patrol agents seized another $352,960 worth of marijuana hidden in the backseat of a vehicle.
In this seizure, according to CBP, agents had approached a pickup truck parked off the road to “conduct a welfare check.” Three individuals were seen running toward Mexico as the agents reached the vehicle. In the back seat of the truck, the marijuana — which weighed 441 pounds — was discovered.
CBP reports that for Fiscal Year (FY) 2015, more than $1.1 million worth of marijuana has been confiscated in the Del Rio Sector alone. This is significant, given that FY 2015 only started on October 1, 2014.
Large marijuana seizures have been frequent near the U.S.-Mexico border during recent months. Breitbart Texas reported in the Spring that $10 million drug busts are now a weekly occurrence in South Texas, which encompasses numerous sectors.
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