K-9 Sniffs Out $4M Of Cocaine Within Decorative Stone At Tecate Port Of Entry

By Elizabeth Ireland, Times of San Diego

January 19, 2023

U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the Tecate Port of Entry have discovered more than $4 million worth of cocaine hidden within a shipment of decorative stone, the agency said Wednesday.

At approximately 10:23 p.m. Jan. 11, officers encountered a male driver, 36, in a tractor trailer entering the U.S. with a shipment manifested as decorative stone.

During the primary inspection, a CBP officer referred the driver along with the tractor trailer for a more intensive examination. Officers randomly offloaded one of the commodities within the trailer and observed an anomaly on one of the stones.

A K-9 team screened the shipment and received a positive alert from the detector dog. Officers discovered 57 cellophane wrapped packages of cocaine. The packages of cocaine were concealed within a plaster-like material designed to appear like stones.

The approximately 256 pounds of cocaine had an estimated street value of about $4.1 million.

The driver, a Mexican citizen, was detained for the alleged narcotic smuggling attempt. CBP officers turned him over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations for further disposition.

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