(The Center Square) – Federal agents along the U.S. border with Mexico recently seized more than 1,000 pounds of methamphetamine, officials said Thursday.
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents working at New Mexico’s Santa Teresa border checkpoint made the seizure on June 30 after a person driving a dump trailer truck tried to enter the U.S. from Mexico. CBP discovered more than 208 bundles of methamphetamine totaling 1,037 inside after pulling the truck over for additional inspection.
“Excellent job by our CBP officers in intercepting this enormous quantity of a very dangerous drug,” acting Santa Teresa Port Director John Hawkins said in a statement.
The seizure comes as drug activity along the southern border saw an increase since the pandemic began, according to law enforcement officials.
A pair of Cibola County officers conducted 21 seizures last year that added up to more than $6 million in drugs confiscated, KOAT News reported.
“We really saw an uptick when COVID hit because a lot of the border check stations and different things like that, they weren’t open,” Sheriff Tony Mace told KOAT. “So you’ve seen a lot more narcotics. You saw the cartel taking advantage of those open areas and trying to move more product through.”
In March, border patrol officials told the Carlsbad Current-Argus that the amount of fentanyl seized in 2022 is on pace to surpass last year’s total of 293 kilograms between New Mexico and Texas.
“To perspective during the last fiscal year CBP officers working in the El Paso Field Office area of operations seized 8,798 pounds of methamphetamine combined,” Hawkins said.
