U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents discovered more than $31 million worth of methamphetamine disguised as a shipment of hot Serrano peppers at the Pharr International Bridge in Texas, authorities said announced on Tuesday.
The peppers were on a tractor-trailer that was selected for inspection by CBP officers on Sunday.
A physical examination then discovered 1,859 packages of suspected methamphetamine weighing 2,155 pounds, according to CBP. Responders on scene seized the peppers, drugs and tractor trailer, and Department of Homeland Security officials have launched a criminal investigation.
“Our CBP officers remain vigilant and have intercepted this massive shipment of methamphetamine and prevented it from reaching American streets,” Port Director Carlos Rodriguez said in a statement.
According to CBP, the undercover shipment of Serrano peppers is not the largest seizure recorded this year.
In February, field operator discovered 13,000 pounds of alleged methamphetamine hidden in a tractor trailer full of absorbent materials used in pig farming to keep newborn piglets dry. The street value of the meth in that shipment was $117 million, authorities said, making it the highest ever at a port in a single enforcement operation. Laredo Field Operations Director Donald Kussler described the seizure as “gigantic.”
“For far too long, drug trafficking organizations have diverted billions of dollars at the expense of our communities ravaged by addiction, death and despair as a result of these toxic substances,” said Homeland Special Agent in Charge Mark Dawson at the time with Security Investigations (HSI) Houston. He also thanked all law enforcement agencies involved. “We prevented a record-breaking amount of these narcotics from reaching Houston, where they would have destroyed countless lives.”
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