U.S. Customs & Border Protection officers at the Otay Mesa commercial facility discovered 614 pounds of methamphetamine hidden in a shipment of green onions. The seized methamphetamine has an estimated street value of $1.4 million.

On July 19, at approximately 12:30 p.m., CBP officers encountered a 31-year-old male Mexican citizen driving a tractor pulling a trailer with a shipment manifested as “mint leaves and other spices.” The CBP officer referred the driver along with the tractor and trailer to the X-ray imaging system.

During the X-ray exam, CBP officers identified anomalies within the shipment and sent the truck-trailer to the dock for a more intensive examination. A CBP canine team screened the conveyance and the detector dog alerted to the shipment.

CBP officers extracted 40 wrapped packages of methamphetamine co-mingled with the green onions. CBP officers probed the boxes and discovered a crystal like substance that field-tested positive for the properties of methamphetamine. CBP officers extracted 40 wrapped packages of methamphetamine co-mingled with the green onions.

The driver was turned over to Homeland Security Investigations for further processing. CBP officers seized the tractor, trailer and narcotics.