Border Patrol nabs alleged smugglers, meth

Border Patrol agents from the Yuma Sector arrested two Mexican citizens allegedly smuggling 20 bundles of methamphetamine worth an estimated $701,000 late Tuesday evening.

About 7:15 p.m. agents from the Wellton Station assigned to the traffic checkpoint on Interstate 8 became suspicious of two vehicles trying to pass through the checkpoint.

A K-9 search resulted in the discovery of 20 softball-sized bundles of methamphetamine stashed behind the dashboard of one of the vehicles. The second vehicle was determined to be involved in the smuggling operation.

The drivers were both determined to be citizens of Mexico. The vehicles and the methamphetamine were turned over to U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration officials.

The total weight of the methamphetamine was about 21 pounds.

So far this fiscal year, Yuma Sector agents have seized over $4.3 million in illegal drugs.