Four men have been charged with federal drug trafficking after authorities seized a record 5,000 pounds of methamphetamine in Southern California.
The US Attorney’s Office said in a press release that federal agents spotted a 20-foot box truck crossing into the United States from Mexico through a port of entry in the San Diego area around 5:00 p.m. Thursday evening.
Agents then saw several men unload dozens of cardboard boxes from the truck and transfer them to a Dodge van in National City, California.
The men were then taken into custody by agents who found approximately 148 packages of methamphetamine that weighed a total of more than 5,000 pounds in what the U.S. Attorney’s Office said was “believed to be one of the largest seizures of methamphetamine in San Diego County.”
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“This is a significant achievement by our law enforcement partners,” said U.S. Attorney Randy Grossman. “Thanks to the stellar work of law enforcement officers, the government has stopped the distribution of more than 5,000 pounds of methamphetamine on our streets.”
The arrested men were identified as Rafael Alsua, Mario Contreras, Etgar Velasquez and Galdrino Contreras.
The four men are charged with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and face a mandatory minimum of ten years in prison and up to life in prison, along with a $10 million fine.
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“This monumental seizure represents another victory against the drug cartels that fuel addiction in the United States,” said DEA Special Agent Shelley S. Howe. “Because of our great partnerships with other law enforcement agencies, we will continue to disrupt the flow of drug cartels in our cities.”
Several major seizures of methamphetamine trafficked into the United States from Mexico have been reported in the past few months, including a drug bust in Texas in May that intercepted $18 million worth of methamphetamine.
A U.S. Border Patrol agent stands on a rock searching for migrants who crossed the U.S.-Mexico border wall near Sasabe, Arizona, Sunday, Jan. 23, 2022. Photo by Salwan Georges/The Washington Post via Getty Images
This week, a 27-year-old man in Yuma, Arizona was arrested after authorities they found nearly 100 pounds of methamphetamine in your truck while parked.
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