California border X-rays uncover 1,002lb cocaine beneath truck floor
Federal authorities at the Calexico Port of Entry seized over 1,000 pounds of cocaine hidden beneath the floorboards of a commercial truck carrying rebar. The driver was arrested after X-ray scans and a drug-sniffing dog uncovered the $20 million shipment.
Why it matters
The seizure underscores the ongoing challenges in border security and the sophisticated methods used by drug trafficking organizations to conceal contraband within legitimate commercial supply chains.
A truck carrying 269 bundles of rebar reached California’s Calexico Port of Entry with what looked like a routine commercial load. But when federal officers inspected the trailer, X-rays revealed a much bigger problem: more than 1,000 pounds of cocaine hidden beneath the floorboards of the attached flatbed, as per a press release shared by the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).Authorities say the narcotics had an estimated street value of more than $20 million. The truck’s driver, 44-year-old Jose Manuel Lopez Lopez, was arrested after officers found 366 packages tucked inside the trailer.The case has now become one of the biggest cocaine seizures in Southern California this year, and a reminder that even ordinary-looking freight can be used to conceal major contraband.How officers found the drugsAccording to the U.S. Department of Justice, Customs and Border Protection officers sent the trailer through an X-ray scan during a border inspection.
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