Border patrol agents intercepted two separate narcotics smuggling operations in the North County this week, confiscating almost 27 pounds of drugs and arresting four suspects, officials announced Friday.
The first bust was on Wednesday at about 3:30 p.m., when agents stopped a Ford Fusion on Interstate 15 northbound, near the town of Rainbow, according to Agent Mark Endicott.
A K-9 led agents to uncover 12 bundles of narcotics located inside the vehicle’s rocker panels. The bundles contained 9.8 pounds of cocaine and 8.34 pounds of crystal methamphetamine, Endicott said.
A 23-year-old woman and 19-year-old man were arrested. The latest seizure took place at about 6 p.m. Thursday, when agents stopped a Jeep Grand Cherokee on northbound Interstate 5, near the Border Patrol checkpoint.
“During the vehicle stop, agents conducted a K-9 sniff of the vehicle, which led to the discovery of four bundles of cocaine stashed in a box of baby wipes located in the trunk of the vehicle,” Endicott said.
The bundles of cocaine weighed 8.8 pounds. Agents arrested a man and woman, both 28 years old.
Together the seizures were worth a total estimated street value of $305,688.
The suspected smugglers and narcotics from both incidents were turned over to the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Jeep Grand Cherokee and Ford Fusion were seized by the U.S. Border Patrol, according to Endicott.
— City News Service
