Produce shipment from Mexico was full of fake watermelons carrying 4,500 pounds of meth
SALT LAKE CITY (KUTV) — U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers uncovered a multimillion-dollar methamphetamine smuggling operation at the U.S.-Mexico border in California, camouflaged as produce.
The drugs were discovered in a shipment of watermelons -- wrapped in paper that looked like the watermelon skins.
CBP officers intercepted a commercial tractor-trailer driven by a 29-year-old man attempting to cross the border on Aug. 16. The vehicle's manifest listed watermelons as its cargo, but a thorough secondary inspection revealed more than just vine fruit in its payload. - 4,587 pounds more, to be exact.
Authorities found 1,120 packages that were wrapped in paper and disguise as watermelon skins. Inside, they discovered a substance that field tested positive for methamphetamine.
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Altogether, the non-watermelon portion of the shipment had a street value of about $5 million, according to Border Patrol.
The driver was handed over to Homeland Security, according to a CBP statement.
“I am incredibly proud of our team for their exceptional work over the past few weeks in uncovering sophisticated and diverse smuggling methods," port director Rosa E. Hernandez said in a statement. "As drug cartels continue to evolve their smuggling techniques, we will continue finding new and better ways to prevent these dangerous drugs and other contraband from entering the country."
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