LUKEVILLE, AZ — U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers stopped about four million fentanyl pills from entering the country.
Officials say on July 1, a 20-year-old man from Arizona, a U.S. citizen, was stopped at the Lukeville Port of Entry while driving a 2011 pick-up truck that was hauling a sports recreational vehicle.
CBP officers inspected the vehicles and noticed anomalies throughout the frame of the trailer. While inspecting it they found packages containing about four million blue fentanyl pills.
“This is the largest fentanyl seizure in CBP’s history, and reflects our unwavering determination to protect our nation and to disrupt the criminal activities of ruthless drug cartels,” said Troy Miller, CBP Senior Official Performing the Duties of the Commissioner. “Every day, CBP officers and agents are on our front line, using their keen instincts and the latest technology to prevent deadly drugs from entering our country and poisoning our communities.”
Officials note that several days later, at the same port of entry, a second seizure occurred of about 270 pounds of methamphetamine. In this second case, a 45-year-old Mexican man was arrested on July 12 while attempting to enter the U.S. with 39 packages of meth.
The combined estimated value of both seizures is more than $12 million, officials said.
“This is an enormous amount of dangerous drugs that officers at the Port of Lukeville prevented from reaching communities throughout the United States,” said Guadalupe Ramirez, Director of Field Operations, Tucson Field Office.
Port of #Lukeville, #AZ makes the largest fentanyl seizure in @CBP OFO history, 4 MILLION FENTANYL PILLS, weighing over 1,000 LBS were seized. The drugs were discovered concealed in the frame of a utility trailer. Outstanding work by team Lukeville! pic.twitter.com/KsjIhu2kPo
— Director of Field Operations Guadalupe H. Ramirez (@DFOTucson) July 30, 2024
