Two truckloads of pot caught headed south toward Mexican border

U.S. Border Patrol agents earlier this week seized nearly a ton of marijuana from two vehicles that were apparently heading south toward the Mexican border.

Around 12:30 Sunday morning October 13, camera operators scanning the border notified Border Patrol agents of two vehicles traveling north across the border in the Ocotillo desert near the eastern base of the Laguna Mountains that separate San Diego County from the Imperial Valley to the east.

By the time deputies arrived, a green Jeep Cherokee and white Toyota 4runner were headed back south toward where they had initially crossed. Both vehicles stopped near the border and three men fled on foot, trying to evade agents.

One man, a 40-year-old Mexican national found to be illegally present in the country, was captured. Upon searching the vehicles, agents recovered 79 bundles of marijuana weighing approximately 1881 pounds and with an estimated street value of $1.5 million. The vehicle and pot were turned over to the Drug Enforcement Administration.

Due to the federal government shutdown, official reporting on enforcement activities had been suspended. The Border Patrol and other agencies, now back to work with full staffing, are working to catch up on a backlog of activity reports.