More Than 400 Pounds of Weed Seized by Border Control (and Dog) in Cincinnati

It looked like a dehumidifier. A search of the electronics found contraband valued at over $1,000,000. it was an intercepted haul Over the weekend in Cincinnati by U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents and their trusty drug-sniffing dog, Bruno.

Officials said the dog apparently alerted officers on Saturday that “each dehumidifier contains a vacuum-sealed bag containing marijuana.”

The shipment arrived at the port of Cincinnati and “While performing surgery on the dog, Bruno alerted these dehumidifiers that had arrived from Ontario, Canada.”

“When officers inspected the first shipment, they found a vacuum-sealed bag hidden inside the dehumidifier case. Officers tested for a substance that tested positive for marijuana. , officers inspected all 12 dehumidifiers and found hidden bags containing a total of 413 pounds of marijuana in each.” said in a press release.

CBP said the cargo was “headed to a UK-based company whose illegal narcotics had a street value of approximately $1.1 million.”

La Fonda D. Sutton Burke, Director of Field Operations for CBP’s Chicago Field Office, praised Bruno’s work.

“Our canine team is an invaluable asset to our CBP enforcement strategy,” Sutton-Burk said in a press release. “These bans are a testament to the hard work, dedication and training these teams employ on a daily basis to protect America.”

Authorities stressed that “cross-border criminals are hopeless and will use every means within their reach to obtain illegal drugs across the border.

“Our officers are trained to identify and stop cargo that poses a threat to our national and international counterparts. We continue to support our law enforcement allies,” Cincinnati Port Director Richard Gillespie said in a press release.

The number of states that have legalized recreational marijuana continues to grow, and Democrats in Washington continue to hold the idea of ​​ending bans at the federal level. country port.

In April, just after New Mexico became the latest state to legalize adult-use marijuana, Customs and Border Protection issued a stern warning to anyone hauling cannabis in the state.

“Border Patrol agents have drug enforcement powers. Marijuana remains a prohibited substance under Schedule 1 of the U.S. Controlled Substances Act. We will continue to take appropriate enforcement action against those who do.

early this month, Texas Border Patrol agents said they “seized over 200 pounds of marijuana in two separate events within five hours.”

CBP said, “Agents assigned to the motorbike patrol observed multiple subjects carrying packages from the Rio Grande in Escobarez.” [Texas]”

“Just as the smugglers were about to load the drugs into the waiting Chevrolet Tahoe, additional agents responded and stopped them. As the smugglers abandoned the bunch and fled towards the river, the Tahoe was forced into its tracks.” After leaving the area, agents seized three bundles of marijuana weighing 115 pounds and valued at US$92,000,” CBP said in a press release.

Then, shortly after midnight the following day, “agents observed a group of 10 subjects leave the Rio Grande, south of Cuevitas,” eventually discovering 90 pounds worth of cannabis.

“One Mexican citizen, along with drugs, was turned over to the Texas Department of Public Safety to face state liability,” the agency said in a press release.