Time and time again, drug dealers have been finding creative ways to smuggle their goods across the border. While they don’t always work out, there’s no denying how ingenious some of the plans are.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection discovered a pickup truck transporting four large wheels of cheese from Mexico into Texas that ended up actually hiding cocaine. Agents at the Presidio Port of entry in Texas had a hunch something was off so they chose to investigate the vehicle.
An X-ray scan of the cheese showed “anomalies” and after further inspection, 17.8 pounds of cocaine concealed were found hidden inside the wheels. “Smugglers will sometimes try to conceal contraband in items that appear innocent to deflect suspicion,” Daniel Mercado, director of Customs and Border Protection at the Presidio Port said.
“The thorough and extensive inspections performed by CBP officers stopped this unusual drug load from reaching its intended destination.”
Officers seized the drugs and the vehicle. The agency reported that the 22-year-old driver who is a U.S. citizen that legally declared the cheese will still face charges for the failed smuggling attempt.
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection has said that it is ramping up efforts to disrupt the movement of drugs into the United States by increasing resources to points of entry, which is where drugs are often smuggled in through vehicles.