Last Thursday night, U.S. Border Patrol agents in San Diego, CA arrested two men for attempting to smuggle 141 pounds of marijuana, valued at approximately $84,600, according to a report sent to police organizations including the National Association of Chiefs of Police.
According to the report, the marijuana was attached to a surfboard the men were towing behind them as they paddled several hundred yards off the coast of Imperial Beach.
At about 11 PM (Pacific), agents first spotted the two men on surfboards approximately 200 yards off-shore paddling north of the international border in Imperial Beach, but soon drifted out of the agent’s view.
Border Patrol agents began to conduct a search using a water rescue craft and requested the assistance of a Customs and Border Protection Air and Marine helicopter. The helicopter arrived, and with the assistance of a high powered searchlight, found the surfers several hundred yards off-shore.
The helicopter directed Border Patrol agents to the surfers’ location. Agents confronted the surfers, a 30-year-old and 27-year-old, who admitted to the agents that they were citizens of Mexico illegally in the United States. The agents towed the surfers and their third surfboard ashore.
The third surfboard was piled high with six bails of marijuana secured tightly to the surfboard with black duct tape. The suspected smugglers and the marijuana were turned over to the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department.
Since October 1, 2008, Border Patrol agents have seized more than 17,500 pounds of marijuana and more than 1,000 pounds of cocaine in just one San Diego Sector.
In a separate incident, agents seized another large load of marijuana on Sunday, June 21, when they performed an immigration inspection of the driver of a pickup truck. During the inspection, a Border Patrol canine team detected the possible presence of contraband hidden in a horse trailer being towed by the truck. Agents searched the trailer and found 15 cellophane-wrapped bundles. The bundles contained marijuana with a total weight of 757.4 pounds and an estimated street value of $605,920.
Jim Kouri, CPP, is founder and CEO of Kouri Associates, a homeland security, public safety and political consulting firm. He’s formerly Fifth Vice-President, now a Board Member of the National Association of Chiefs of Police, an editor for ConservativeBase.com, a columnist for Examiner.com, a contributor to KGAB radio news, and news director for NewswithViews.com.
He’s former chief at a New York City housing project in Washington Heights nicknamed “Crack City” by reporters covering the drug war in the 1980s. In addition, he served as director of public safety at St. Peter’s University and director of security for several major organizations. He’s also served on the National Drug Task Force and trained police and security officers throughout the country.
Kouri appears regularly as on-air commentator for over 100 TV and radio news and talk shows including Fox News Channel, Oprah, McLaughlin Report, CNN Headline News, MTV, etc.
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