A suspect was arrested after border patrol agents discovered over 100 pounds of fentanyl pills being smuggled into Southern California.
At around 4 a.m., U.S. Border Patrol agents spotted a suspicious vehicle near Avenida Vista Hermosa on the 5 Freeway in San Clemente.
Authorities stopped the vehicle and a K9 “trained to detect the presence of concealed people, narcotics, and other contraband conducted a search of the vehicle and alerted agents to search further,” officials said.
In the car’s trunk, agents discovered a large amount of plastic-wrapped packages placed inside trash bags.
Inside the bags, 40 cellophane-wrapped packages containing blue fentanyl pills were found. The total weight of the pills was around 105 pounds.
The driver, identified only as an adult male who was a U.S. citizen, was taken into custody. The suspect and narcotics were later turned over to the Orange County Sheriff’s Department for prosecution on state charges and the vehicle was seized by U.S. Border Patrol.