513 LBS of Marijuana Found Concealed in Furniture

EL PASO, TEXAS U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers performing anti-terror inspections at the Paso Del Norte border crossing in El Paso seized 513 pounds of marijuana Friday. A brother and sister from Mexico were taken into custody as a result of the failed smuggling attempt. The seizure was made at about 1 p.m. when a 2001 Dodge Ram pickup with a load of furniture in the bed entered the port from Mexico. A CBP officer at the primary inspection booth directed the driver to the secondary inspection area where CBP drug sniffing dog Lady alerted to the furniture. CBP officers cut open one sofa and located numerous tape-wrapped bundles inside. The contents of the bundles tested positive for marijuana. CBP officers removed a total of 460 marijuana-filled bundles from the furniture. This is a good example of hard working CBP officers foiling the efforts of smugglers who went to extreme lengths in order to evade detection, said Polly Figueroa, U.S. Customs and Border Protection acting El Paso Port Director. To the untrained eye, this was a man, woman and her two kids crossing with some new furniture. CBP officers proved again that what appears normal could be anything but routine. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) special agents arrested the driver of the vehicle, 31-year-old Miriam Molina Macias, of Juarez, Mexico. ICE agents also arrested the passenger, 28-year-old German Molina Macias of Juarez, Mexico, in connection with the failed smuggling attempt. The drivers 11-year-old son and 14-year-old daughter, who were also passengers in the truck at the time of the seizure, were turned over to a relative. CBP officers screen all people, vehicles, and goods entering the United States, while facilitating the flow of legitimate trade and travel into and out of the United States. Their mission also includes carrying out traditional border-related responsibilities, including narcotics interdiction, enforcing immigration law, and protecting the nations food supply and agriculture industry from pests and diseases. While anti-terrorism is the primary mission of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the inspection process at the ports of entry associated with this mission results in impressive numbers of enforcement actions in all categories.