Federal officers seized 72 pounds of methamphetamine that was being smuggled from Reynosa, Mexico into Texas. The drugs were hidden in a Ford pickup truck being driving by a Mexican national.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers using non-invasive search technology and a drug detection K-9 dog discovered nearly $1.5 million in methamphetamine hidden in a 1997 Ford F-150 pickup truck on Saturday. The Ford was being driven by a 30-year-old Mexican national who resides in Rio Bravo, Tamaulipas, Mexico, information provided to Breitbart Texas by CBP officials revealed.

The driver was referred to a secondary inspection station where non-invasive search technology revealed anomalies within the vehicle. A further search by a K-9 officer and other CBP officers resulted in the discovery of 24 packages of what tested positive as being methamphetamine. The 24 packages weighed a total of 72.44 pounds. Officers estimated the street value at @1,448,863.

The alleged Mexican drug smuggler was crossing the Donna International Bridge when the drugs were discovered.

“I would like to commend our officers for their diligence and hard work as evidenced by this significant narcotics interdiction,” Progreso/Donna Port of Entry Port Director Nestor Garza III said in the written statement. “They did an excellent job.”

The truck and the drugs were seized by federal authorities. The Mexican national was arrested and turned over to Homeland Security Investigations for possible prosecution.

Breitbart Texas’ Ildefonso Ortiz and the Cartel Chronicles have reported extensively on the civil war that is going on in Tamaulipas, just south of the Texas border with Mexico. Two rival factions of the Gulf Cartel are battling for control of the lucrative drug and human smuggling routes in this area. The ongoing battle has left residents cowering in their home to escape the violent gun battles and the horrific execution of drug smuggling rivals.

Bob Price serves as associate editor and senior political news contributor for Breitbart Texas. He is a founding member of the Breitbart Texas team. Follow him on Twitter @BobPriceBBTX.