U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers have seized more than $17 million worth of meth stashed inside a shipment of coconuts.
On September 28, CBP officers at the Pharr International Bridge discovered nearly 1,950 pounds of alleged methamphetamine hidden within a tractor-trailer.
The estimated street value of the drugs is thought to be $17,431,726, according to the CBP.
U.S.-Mexico border officers referred the tractor-trailer hauling a shipment of coconuts for secondary inspection.
Upon further physical examination, CBP officers discovered 378 packages of alleged methamphetamine hidden within the trailer.
CBP K-9s helped officers detect the drug haul.
CBP officers seized the meth and the vehicle after intercepting a massive haul of narcotics.
Homeland Security Investigations has launched a criminal investigation, and inquiries remain ongoing.
“Our frontline CBP officers continue to maintain a robust enforcement posture in the cargo environment, and by effectively utilizing their training, experience, technology, and canines, they prevented a massive load of methamphetamine from wreaking havoc on our streets,” said Port Director Carlos Rodriguez.
“This seizure underscores the seriousness of the drug threat we face on a daily basis and the resolve of our officers to keep our communities safe.”
The operations are part of ongoing CBP efforts to intercept and prevent the trafficking of illicit drugs into the country.
It comes after CBP officers confiscated $48 million worth of meth stashed within a lettuce shipment at the Hidalgo Port of Entry in August.
This seizure of the alleged narcotics is the largest meth encounter in the history of the Hidalgo Port of Entry, the CBP said.
Meanwhile, in August, officers confiscated more than $5 million worth of methamphetamine after smugglers had disguised 4,587 pounds of meth by wrapping the packages in bright green plastic with stripes, making them resemble small watermelons.
Meth worth more than $5 million was found hidden in a shipment of cucumbers and bell peppers during a routine check at the Pharr Port of Entry in Texas on the Mexico border in July.
Over 164,000 pounds of methamphetamine have been seized nationwide in Fiscal Year 2024, according to CBP data.
Law enforcement officials at the U.S.-Mexico border seized over 149,000 pounds of meth in the Southwest border alone in the 2023-2024 fiscal year as of August 2024.
Roughly 2.5 million people aged 12 and older reported using the drug in the U.S., according to a study conducted by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA).
There were an estimated 107,543 drug overdose deaths in the U.S. in 2023, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Health Statistics.
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