U.S. Border Patrol agents seized 38 pounds of cocaine at the I-5 checkpoint south of San Clemente Wednesday.
Agents stopped a 24-year-old male United States citizen driving a 2006 Ford Fusion at 12:20 p.m. at the checkpoint, according to a Border Patrol release.
Agents thought the man looked nervous, so they brought out a drug dog to sniff around the car. The dog indicated there were drugs in the car, where agents found 12 bundles of cocaine concealed in the vehicle’s rocker panels.
The cocaine weighed 38.45 pounds and had an estimated street value of $422,790, according to the release.
The suspected smuggler and narcotics were turned over to the Drug Enforcement Administration for further investigation. The vehicle was seized by the U.S. Border Patrol.
