1,430 pounds of pot seized in stolen vehicle

Border Patrol agents assigned to the Yuma sector’s Wellton Station recovered a stolen vehicle loaded with more than 1,000 pounds of marijuana early Sunday morning.

At 7:30 a.m. agents patrolling the area came across a 2006 gray Chevrolet Silverado that had become stuck in the soft desert terrain approximately 30 miles southwest of Wellton.

"It's typical. We sometimes even get stuck in the sand out there," said agent Eric Anderson, spokesman for the Yuma sector Border Patrol. "The ground out there is really soft sand."

Upon inspection of the vehicle, agents found 63 plastic-wrapped bundles of marijuana.

After securing the vehicle and marijuana, agents began to track footprints of three individuals who had exited the vehicle.

With the assistance of a CBP helicopter, agents determined that all three returned to Mexico.

"It probably would have taken (the drug smugglers) about an hour to an hour and a half to walk back from there," Anderson said.

Anderson said agents believe the drug smugglers drove over a mountain to bypass border fencing along the international boundary in that area.

"They may have chiseled away some rocks in the area," Anderson said. "It shows the extreme efforts they are making to try and get their drugs through."

The 1,430 pounds of marijuana was valued at $1,144,000. The 2006 Chevrolet Silverado was reported stolen out of Calexico.

The stolen vehicle was turned over the Yuma County Sheriff’s Office and the contraband was turned over to the Drug Enforcement Administration.

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James Gilbert can be reached at
jgilbert@yumasun.com or 539-6854.