Tijuana Man Charged For Alleged Meth, Fentanyl Trafficking At Border

By Debbie L. Sklar, Times of San Diego

February 28, 2023

A Tijuana man who allegedly tried to drive into the United States with more than 2,200 pounds of methamphetamine and 53 pounds of fentanyl has been charged by San Diego federal prosecutors with drug trafficking offenses.

The discovery of drugs in a van allegedly driven by Andres Gonzales Soriano, 24, was described by the U.S. Attorney’s Office as “believed to be one of the largest methamphetamine seizures in San Diego County.”

Prosecutors allege that on the afternoon of Feb. 22, Soriano was driving through the Otay Mesa Port of Entry when he was referred to a secondary inspection area.

A search of the van yielded 63 packages hidden inside cardboard boxes and the packages contained substances that field-tested positive for methamphetamine and fentanyl, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.

“This is a huge quantity of dangerous drugs that is no longer destined for the streets of San Diego and beyond,” U.S. Attorney Randy Grossman said in a statement. “A seizure of this magnitude saves lives.”

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