Westmorland, California - El Centro Sector Border Patrol agents assigned to the Highway 86 checkpoint arrested a suspected drug smuggler after discovering packages of hard narcotics concealed in his vehicle today.

The incident occurred at approximately 7 a.m., when Border Patrol agents encountered the driver of a 2002 Buick Park Avenue at the checkpoint.

A Border Patrol canine detection team alerted to the vehicle.  Agents referred the driver to secondary inspection for further examination.  Agents discovered 10 packages of methamphetamine and two packages of heroin concealed in the vehicle’s frame rails.

The methamphetamine weighed 11 pounds with an estimated street value of $110,000 and the heroin weighed 4.84 pounds with an estimated street value of $58,000.

The man, a 30-year-old Lawfully Admitted Permanent Resident, the vehicle, and narcotics were turned over to the Drug Enforcement Administration for further investigation.

Last fiscal year, El Centro Sector seized more than 445 pounds of methamphetamine and 186.5 pounds of heroin.

The El Centro Sector’s Community Awareness Campaign is a simple and effective program to raise public awareness on the indicators of crime and other threats.  We encourage public and private sector employees to remain vigilant and play a key role in keeping our country safe.  Please report any suspicious activity to the Border Community Threat Hotline at 1-800-901-2003.