TUCSON, Ariz. – Customs and Border Protection officers arrested a Mexican man and a Phoenix woman Thursday for allegedly attempting to smuggle more than $261,000 in methamphetamine and cocaine during separate incidents at the Port of Nogales. Officers at the Dennis DeConcini crossing arrested Isidro Valazquez-Valenzuela, 22, of Nogales, Sonora, Mexico, after a CBP narcotics-detection canine alerted to the Mazda SUV he was driving. During a secondary inspection, officers located nearly 25 pounds of cocaine, worth in excess of $258,000, within the vehicle’s quarter panels.Later in the day, officers at the Morley pedestrian crossing referred Rebekah Megan Ramos, 24, for inspection as she attempted to enter the United States. Officers searched the woman and found more than a pound of meth, worth about $3,300, concealed under her clothing.Officers seized the drugs and vehicle, and referred both subjects to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.U.S. Customs and Border Protection is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control and protection of our nation's borders at and between the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.



29 May 2015