YUMA, Ariz. – Yuma Sector Border Patrol agents working at the Interstate 8 Immigration Checkpoint seized methamphetamine worth approximately $113,000 in an attempted drug smuggling event Tuesday.

A U.S. Border Patrol canine assigned to checkpoint duties alerted to an odor it was trained to detect emitting from a green Toyota Camry with a single occupant in the primary inspection lane.

Wellton Station agents conducted a secondary inspection of the vehicle where 50 vacuum-sealed packages containing methamphetamine were discovered in the gas tank, backseat, rear door panels and the air filter compartment of the vehicle. The combined weight of the 50 packages was more than 56 pounds.

Agents discovered $113K worth of meth

inside of a vehicle stopped

at the I-8 Immigration checkpoint

The driver, a 20-year-old male United States citizen from Yuma, was arrested on drug smuggling charges. The narcotics and the vehicle were seized.

Yuma Sector Border Patrol agents continue to counter illegal immigration in addition to drug smugglers attempting to transport deadly and toxic drugs into the interior of the United States while exposing themselves to the dangers of COVID-19. According to a national survey, methamphetamine use may be responsible for up to 70% of property crimes. As our communities battle with the current health pandemic, the drug use epidemic continues to affect communities throughout the nation.