300 Pounds Of Meth, Cocaine Seized In South OC By Border Patrol Agents

SAN CLEMENTE, CA — Roughly 318 pounds of methamphetamine and 72 pounds of cocaine were seized in a series of enforcement actions over a two-week period at the San Clemente Border Patrol Station, authorities said this week.

The operation took place amid the lengthy federal government shutdown.

The first bust took place Oct. 28, when agents from the San Clemente Station stopped a vehicle traveling north on Interstate 5. A Border Patrol K-9 sniffed out the presence of narcotics and triggered a search of the rear storage compartment of the vehicle.

According to agents, their search uncovered 25 packages of methamphetamine weighing around 197 pounds. The driver, a U.S. citizen, was turned over to local authorities for prosecution.

The second incident took place the next day, when agents from the San Clemente Station stopped another vehicle on the Interstate 5 traveling north.

There, 120 pounds of methamphetamine was discovered in the vehicle. The driver, a lawfully admitted permanent residents from Mexico, and the narcotics were turned over to the Drug Enforcement Administration for prosecution.

The third major bust took place Nov. 11, when a Border Patrol K-9 sniffed out 25 packages of cocaine with an estimated street value of $617,500. The driver and passenger of the vehicle were both U.S. citizens, agents said.

They were arrested and turned over to Homeland Security Investigations for prosecution.

"These recent enforcement actions illustrate the teamwork and tenacity of our Border Patrol agents and law enforcement partners," San Diego Sector Chief Patrol Agent Justin De La Torre said. "We are aggressively targeting the Foreign Terrorist Organizations responsible for bringing these deadly products into the U.S. and ask for the public's help in dismantling the cartels by not using illicit drugs."