2 Tons of Marijuana Seized at Texas Inland Border Checkpoint

U.S. Border Patrol Agents discovered more than 4,000 pounds of marijuana on Thursday in a tractor-trailer at the inland border checkpoint located on I-35 between San Antonio and Laredo. Agents were alerted to the possibility of drugs by a K-9 assigned to the checkpoint.

Agents asked the driver to move the rig to a secondary inspection station, according to a Customs and Border Protection (CBP) press release obtained by Breitbart Texas. Using a non-intrusive scanner, agents discovered anomalies in the trailer and began a physical inspection of the contents.

The inspection revealed 380 bundles containing what would later test positive as being marijuana. The bundles were contained in cardboard boxes filled with Styrofoam cups.

The marijuana weighed 4,174.83 pounds. It has an estimated street value of $3,339,864.00. The driver, vehicle, and narcotics were transferred to the custody of the Drug Enforcement Administration for investigation.

“This is an indication of the amount of drugs actually being smuggled into the United States,” said Border Patrol Agent Hector Garza, president of the National Border Patrol Council Local 2455, in an interview with Breitbart Texas.  “When the agency invests in assets like these highly trained K-9s and handlers, these are the results you will see.”

“The K-9 team is crucial to the checkpoints,” Garza explained. “They literally have seconds to determine if a secondary inspection is needed as the thousands of cars, trucks and buses pass through here every day.”

“This is more than 4,000 pounds of marijuana that the cartels will not be able to deliver to the streets,” he concluded. “Our hard working Border Patrol agents put their lives on the line every day and night to stop these drugs and their smugglers.”

The North Laredo checkpoint is currently located 29 miles north of Laredo, Texas. The 15-acre complex includes facilities to process all automobiles, semi-tractor trailers and other commercial vehicles like busses and travel vans. It also includes a 5,000 square foot administration building that houses a processing area, a sally port, offices and detention facilities.

In addition to traffic through the checkpoint, the agents assigned to this station also cover about 430 square miles, including 30 miles of river border along the Rio Grande River.

Bob Price is a senior political news contributor for Breitbart Texas and a member of the original Breitbart Texas team. Follow him on Twitter @BobPriceBBTX