U.S. Customs and Border Patrol agents have seized more than half a ton of fentanyl — more than 4 million pills — in the largest drug bust in the agency’s history, officials announced this week.
The staggering amount of deadly opioids was discovered by CBP agents at the Lukeville, Arizona, border port when they arrested a 20-year-old driver of a pickup truck that was transporting a sports recreational vehicle on a trailer.
After noticing several “anomalies” in the trailer’s chassis, officers pulled the truck over to the side for further inspection,” the agency said.
A K9 team discovered 234 drug packets hidden in the frame containing approximately 4 million blue fentanyl pills.
“This is the largest fentanyl seizure in CBP history, and it reflects our unwavering commitment to protecting our nation and disrupting the criminal activities of ruthless drug cartels,” Troy Miller, CBP’s senior commissioner, said in a statement.
“Every day, CBP officers and law enforcement officers are on the front lines, using their keen instincts and the latest technology to stop deadly drugs from entering our country and poisoning our communities.”
On July 12, CBP officers at the same port of entry seized 272 pounds of methamphetamine while a 45-year-old Mexican citizen was also driving a pickup truck towing a trailer.
With the help of a K9 team, CBP agents discovered 39 packages of drugs and an additional five pounds of cocaine, the agency said.
Authorities estimate the street value of the two drug seizures to be more than $12.6 million. Both men have been arrested.
“This is a tremendous amount of dangerous drugs that Lukeville Port officials have prevented from reaching communities across the United States,” said Guadalupe Ramirez, director of field operations for the Tucson field office.
The Post has contacted CBP for additional information about the arrests.
The Port of Lukeville is approximately 150 miles southeast of Tucson.
