Rio Grande Valley Border Patrol Agents Seize Half A Million In Marijuana

CBS Dallas/Fort Worth

May 16, 2021

Rio Grande Valley Sector Border Patrol agents seized more than $500,000 worth of marijuana in two failed narcotics smuggling attempts.

On May 13, Weslaco Border Patrol Station agents working near Mercedes, Texas, discovered five abandoned bundles of marijuana. As they searched the area, they apprehended a Mexican national suspected of being involved in the smuggling attempt. An additional four other individuals were observed swimming across the Rio Grande into Mexico. The marijuana weighed over 240 pounds and is worth more than $190K. The suspect and narcotics were turned over to the Texas Department of Public Safety.

Earlier Friday morning, Rio Grande City Border Patrol agents working near Chapeño, Texas, received a report of multiple individuals loading bundles of suspected narcotics into a truck. As agents responded to the area, they encountered the vehicle abandoned on the side of the road with 18 bundles of marijuana in the bed of the truck. The marijuana weighed more than 410 pounds and has a value of over $320K. Agents searched the immediate area for suspects; however, none were located.

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