U.S. Border Patrol seizes fentanyl worth more than $1.5 million at Pine Valley checkpoint

U.S. Border Patrol agents assigned to the Campo Border Patrol Station discovered 112 pounds of fentanyl concealed inside a vehicle at the Pine Valley checkpoint on May 18.

Agents patrolling the east county conducted a vehicle stop on a 2003 SUV that was travelling west on Interstate 8. During a brief investigation, an agency K-9 team alerted to the vehicle. After the alert, agents transported the vehicle and driver, an adult male United States citizen, to the Interstate 8 Border Patrol checkpoint in Pine Valley.

At the checkpoint, agents searched the vehicle and discovered nine plastic-wrapped packages concealed in its roof. The packages contained blue pills that tested positive for fentanyl. The total weight of the narcotics was 112 pounds with an estimated street value of $1,536,000.

The driver and vehicle were turned over to the San Diego Sheriff’s Department for prosecution, and the narcotics were turned over to the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).

“Transnational criminal organizations do everything they can to distribute these harmful narcotics and earn their profits with no regard for the destructive effects they have on our communities.” said San Diego Sector Chief Patrol Agent Aaron M. Heitke. “Our Border Patrol agents remain vigilant, day and night, to intercept these poisons and the smugglers who transport them.”