Marfa Sector Border Patrol Agents Seize a Ton of Marijuana

Marfa, Texas Border Patrol agents assigned to the Marfa Sectors Sierra Blanca station seized over a ton of marijuana in two separate incidents Saturday and Sunday. Both seizures occurred at the stations checkpoint on Interstate 10. Saturday evening about 5 p.m., agents became suspicious of a man driving a 2000 Freightliner pulling a trailer. The driver is a legal permanent resident from Guatemala. When agents inspected the trailer, they found two pallet loads of supposed bottled water mixed with boxes of clothing. The 61 bottled water boxes contained 1,596 pounds of marijuana with a street value over $1.2 million. The drugs, the driver and the vehicle were turned over to the Hudspeth County Sheriff's Office. About 9 p.m. Sunday evening, a man driving a 1996 Chevrolet Silverado pickup arrived at the checkpoint. After exhibiting nervous behavior, the man and his female passenger, both U.S. citizens, were referred to secondary inspection. After further inspection, agents discovered that the entire bed of the pickup was false and contained 143 bundles of marijuana weighing 493 pounds. The marijuana is valued at over $400,000. The man, the woman, the truck, and the drugs were turned over to the Hudspeth County Sheriffs Office.