U.S. Border Patrol agents arrest six suspected smugglers

U.S. Border Patrol agents from the Yuma Sector arrested six suspected smugglers who were trying to sneak makeshift backpacks of marijuana into the country Saturday morning.

According to Shaun Kuzia, a spokesman for the Yuma Sector, Border Patrol agents assigned to Camp Grip detected the illegal entry of six people at about 6 a.m., approximately 30 miles west of the U.S. Port of Entry at Lukeville, Ariz.

"Agents located the group while sign cutting," Kuzia said. "The group was walking with carpet on their feet to hide their tracks."

Sign cutting is the skill of locating, following and identifying evidence of human passage through an area.

Kuzia said agents tracked the group for nearly three hours across the harsh and desolate desert terrain before finally apprehending all six suspected smugglers.

"Agents had the smugglers in custody within three hours of detecting them," Kuzia said.

Agents also seized six bundles of marijuana weighing 262 pounds with an estimated street value of $209,600.

Kuzia said Border Patrol agents turned the suspected smugglers and marijuana over to the Drug Enforcement Administration.

Camp Grip is Yuma Sector’s forward operating base, designed to maintain operational control of the seam between the Yuma and Tucson sectors.

Having Camp Grip allows the Border Patrol the ability to deploy mobile enforcement in remote areas of southwest Arizona.

The Yuma Sector deploys Border Patrol agents to Camp Grip to deter and detect all threats attempting to enter the United States illegally through the Sonoran desert.

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