EL PASO, Texas (Border Report) – A drug-sniffing drug has alerted border officers to a possible cocaine smuggling scheme involving multiple drivers working for the same commercial trucking firm.
The three Mexican drivers showed up almost simultaneously at the Otay Mesa (California) commercial facility on Tuesday afternoon. A U.S. Customs and Border Protection records check revealed all three had crossed into the United States on more than 20 occasions since Jan. 15 while hauling empty trailers.
CBP officers referred all three Kenworth tractor-trailers to a secondary inspection area. A dog trained to detect drugs and other illicit cargo found nothing in the trailers, but alerted its handlers to possible contraband in each of the cabs.
Border officers discovered hidden compartments in the floor area of the cabs and began drilling. Court records show they found more than 170 pounds (77.8 kilos) of a white powdery substance that tested positive for cocaine.
In a post-arrest interview, driver Fernando Medina Rodriguez allegedly told Homeland Security Investigations agents that he was hired by unnamed parties to smuggle cocaine into the United States. Medina said he would get paid $5,000 once the drug inside his rig cleared customs and he called a contact at an undisclosed number.
Gustavo Camacho Medina and Carlos Cardenas Medina were arrested at the crossing eight minutes apart after CBP pulled cocaine from their rigs. There is no record that they agreed to talk to investigators.
Medina, Camacho and Cardenas have been charged with conspiracy and felony importation of a controlled substance.
They made an initial appearance Wednesday before U.S. Magistrate Steve B. Chu in San Diego. Arraignment is scheduled for April 1 in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California.
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