EL PASO, Texas (Border Report)— Border officers found nearly $340,000 worth of fentanyl in a vehicle that arrived from Mexico on Wednesday at the Hidalgo International Bridge in Hidalgo, Texas.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection said officers used X-rays and physically inspected the vehicle before discovering nine packages containing 22 pounds of fentanyl, a deadly opioid.
“Our CBP officers use all available tools and resources to identify and extract narcotics with caution,” said Carlos Rodriguez, port director for the Hidalgo/Pharr/Anzalduas Port of Entry. “It is vital to the safety of our officers that we be able to identify what type of narcotic we are dealing with, as a small amount of fentanyl can be fatal.”
The narcotics had an estimated street value of $339,300.
The border officers seized the vehicle and drugs as U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement-Homeland Security Investigations took over the investigation.