Border Patrol seizes more than 3,600 pounds of pot in recent busts locally
RIO GRANDE CITY — Area U.S. Border Patrol agents made seven drug seizures Tuesday that netted 3,634 pounds of marijuana.
The two largest busts occurred near Escobares.
Agents saw a 1998 Ford F-150 pickup truck come from a dirt road that leads to the Rio Grande. They tried to approach the vehicle but the driver took off, eventually leading them to a field and then fleeing on foot, according to a Border Patrol statement. No arrests were made, but agents seized 1,305 pounds of pot.
In another bust, agents saw a white 1996 Dodge pickup headed west on Highway 83 with a blanket covering the truck’s bed. Agents followed the truck, and its driver abandoned the vehicle at the Efren Ramirez Road intersection. No arrests were made. Agents seized the truck and the 984 pounds of marijuana hidden beneath the blanket.
The 3,634 pounds of marijuana seized in the seven unrelated busts carry a street value of more than $2.9 million.
