U.S. Customs and Border Protection released data showing that a record $266 million worth of drugs have been seized in the San Diego sector since the beginning of the year.
The total represents seizures by officers at San Ysidro, Otay Mesa, regional airports, various harbor facilities, Calexico, Tecate and Andrade from Jan. 1 through April 30.
Sidney Aki, CBP director of field operations for San Diego, termed it “an alarming amount of narcotics” with fentanyl setting a record.
CBP data showed the following amounts and street value of different drugs seized in 1,359 separate incidents:
- Marijuana – 1,535 pounds worth $3.8 million
- Cocaine – 5,287 pounds worth $83.9 million
- Heroin – 227 pounds worth $3.1 million
- Methamphetamine – 26,579 pounds worth $55.8 million
- Fentanyl – 4,403 pounds worth $119.9 million
“Statistically, fentanyl is one of the deadliest drug threats our nation has ever encountered and CBP is on the frontline seizing record amounts of it,” said Aki. “Preventing cross-border smuggling of fentanyl and other dangerous drugs is one of our top priorities.”