Mexican National Charged with Smuggling 11K Rounds of Ammunition Into Texas

U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers seized approximately 11,000 rounds of 7.62mm ammunition being smuggled into the United States from Mexico.

CBP officers assigned to the El Paso port of entry on November 5 encountered a 2011 Honda Ridgeline arriving from Mexico. The officer directed the driver, a Mexican national, to a secondary inspection station after a “Low Energy Portal Scan” revealed possible anomalies.

A K-9 search and a secondary Z-portal x-ray scan confirmed the anomalies. Officers began a physical search of the vehicle and discovered multiple plastic bags packed with loose 7.62 ammunition, according to a statement from CBP officials.

In total, the officers recovered 11,100 rounds of ammunition.

“To put it in perspective,” CBP El Paso Director of Field Operations Hector Mancha explained, “CBP officers working at El Paso area ports seized 15,678 rounds of ammunition in all of fiscal year 2021, 7,224 rounds in fiscal year 2022 and 11,205 rounds in fiscal year 2023.”

A few days earlier, CBP officers at the Area Port of San Luis, Arizona, seized a cache of “high-powered assault weapons” being smuggled from the U.S. into Mexico.

The officers encountered a 28-year-old man driving a Chevrolet SUV in the outbound lanes of the port. The officers referred the driver, a U.S. citizen, to a secondary inspection area after a K-9 alerted to the possible presence of weapons in the SUV, officials stated.

During the secondary inspection, the agents found five AK-47 rifles, five AK-47 magazines, two 50-caliber rifles, and two 50-caliber ammunition magazines hidden in a speaker box.

“Preventing the smuggling of these weapons into Mexico undoubtedly saved lives,” stated Chris Leon, Area Port Director for San Luis.

Both drivers were arrested and the vehicles were seized.