Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Office of Field Operations (OFO) officers at Laredo Port of Entry recently detailed a series of cocaine seizures.
“Within a four-day span, our frontline CBP officers at Laredo Port of Entry seized a total of three significant loads of cocaine in the cargo environment,” Laredo Port of Entry Port Director Alberto Flores said. “These seizures perfectly illustrate our officers’ firm resolve to uphold our border security mission and keep our community safe.”
The larger seizure occurred on Aug. 30, 2022, at the World Trade Bridge when a CBP officer referred a 2009 International tractor hauling a shipment of furniture for a secondary inspection via a canine and non-intrusive inspection system examination, yielding the discovery of 285 packages containing nearly 718 pounds of alleged cocaine within the shipment.
Officials noted drugs had an estimated street value of $5,535,880.
Another seizure on the same date at the World Trade Bridge involved CBP officers referring a tractor-trailer hauling steel rolls for a secondary inspection, noting a non-intrusive inspection system and canine examination resulted in the discovery of 110 packages containing a total of 270 pounds of alleged cocaine with an estimated street value of $2,084,200.
CBP seized the narcotics in both enforcement actions, with Immigration and Customs Enforcement-Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI) special agents investigating the seizures.