Marijuana Seizures Jump 1,000 Percent at New York-Canada Border Crossings

The seizure of marijuana by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at international crossings along the New York/Canada border jumped 1,000 percent this fiscal year. Officers seized more than 40,000 pounds of the drugs during the first 11 months of this fiscal year.

CBP Office of Field Operations officers assigned to the Buffalo Field Office seized 40,337 pounds of marijuana during the first 11 months of Fiscal Year 2020, according to information obtained from CBP officials. This is up from 3,443 pounds during the same period last year.

The report, released by CBP officials on Friday, reports the seizure of marijuana jumped more than 1,000 percent when comparing the same year-to-date periods.

“The work of the officers has been incredible and their dedication to CBP’s enforcement mission is evident when you look at the increase in narcotics seizures,” said Buffalo Field Office Director Rose Brophy. “Criminal organizations are not going to stop just because the border has restricted travel. The marijuana seizures alone are valued at just over $120M. Those proceeds will not make it back to the criminal organizations who would have used those profits to fund other criminal activity.”

The drug seizures occurred at 16 ports of entry along the New York/Canada border between October 1, 2019, and August 31, 2020, officials stated. Efforts by the OFO officers led to the interdiction of 732 drug smuggling attempts for marijuana alone.

In total, officers made 1,660 drug interdictions in the Buffalo Field Office that included the seizures of illegal prescription drugs, LSD, psilocybin mushrooms, steroids, ecstasy, fentanyl, cocaine, and heroin. The total weight in drug seizures amounted to 40,640 pounds.

Officials reported the drug seizures occurred following the searches of commercial shipments and passenger vehicles.