Cocaine, Heroin Stash Found By Murrieta Border Patrol Agents: CBP

TEMECULA, CA — A 36-year-old man allegedly caught by Border Patrol agents transporting 40 pounds of cocaine and heroin into Riverside County was being held Wednesday in lieu of $500,000 bail, records showed.

Raymond Steven Gonzalez was arrested Sunday morning and booked at the Byrd Detention Center in French Valley on suspicion of possession of drugs for sale, transportation of controlled substances in excess of 20 pounds and possession of cocaine, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

About 11:15 a.m. that day, two Murrieta-based agents traveling northbound on Interstate 15 through Temecula spotted Gonzalez's 2003 Ford Expedition swerving in and out of lanes erratically and began tailing him, according to agency spokeswoman Mary Caston. As the suspect transitioned from Temecula Parkway onto state Route 79, the patrolmen initiated a traffic stop, and Gonzalez pulled the SUV onto the shoulder of the roadway, she said.

That's when the large drug discovery was made— valued at $400,700 she said.

"During the encounter, a Border Patrol K-9 conducted a sniff of the vehicle and produced a positive alert," she said in a news release. "Conducting a hand search, agents soon discovered six bundles of cocaine hidden behind the driver’s side rear-quarter panel.

Upon even further inspection, agents found another eight bundles of cocaine, in addition to two bundles of black tar heroin, according to Caston.

"The 14 bundles of cocaine weighed 33.40 pounds and have an estimated street value of $334,000," she said. "The two bundles of black tar heroin weighed 6.39 pounds and have an estimated street value of $66,700."

Gonzalez was taken into custody without a struggle. Records show he was due to make his first court appearance on Wednesday.

— City News Service contributed to this report