Citizen’s Report Leads to $1 Million Marijuana Seizure in South Texas

A citizen’s report of suspicious activity led to the discovery and seizure by authorities of more than $1 million worth of marijuana in South Texas. The discovery of the marijuana on a South Padre Island beach came after a citizen witnessed a boat offloading large bundles onto the beach.

When officials arrived, the boat quickly retreated into Mexican waters, according to a Customs and Border Protection statement obtained by Breitbart Texas late last week. A search of the area revealed 14 bundles of what would be determined to be marijuana. The marijuana seizure weighed in at nearly 1,300 pounds and had an estimated street value of over $1 million.

Breitbart Texas’ Sylvia Longmire reported in August that drug smugglers were shifting many of their smuggling efforts back to the open seas and Texas beaches. “Recent seizure data from the US Coast Guard is indicating that traffickers are once again focusing on maritime smuggling routes off the coast of Mexico and Central America,” Longmire wrote.

Also in August, Breitbart TV reported on the seizure of 12,000 pounds of cocaine that was discovered in a makeshift submarine in the Pacific Ocean. This was reported to be the largest ever drug seizure by the U.S. Coast Guard.

Breitbart Texas has also reported on illegal Mexican fishing boats that have been seen fishing illegally in U.S. waters. Concerned fishing organizations have previously claimed these boats will sometimes carry drugs during their northbound travel and then fish the waters during their southbound trip.

Following the discovery of the 14 bundles of marijuana on South Padre Island, aircrews were called in to conduct an expanded search of the area. The Office of Air and Marine (OAM) helicopter crew members found two more bundles, bringing the total weight of the seizure to 1,289 pounds. No arrests were made as the smugglers fled back into Mexican waters during the night.

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