drug smuggling

This Sept. 12, 2021 photo provided by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection shows drugs concealed inside the engine of a car.

National

U.S. Marine gets 12 years for cross-border drug smuggling

1:00am April 22, 2023

by The Associated Press

Roberto Salazar II of San Diego was sentenced for importing fentanyl and for conspiracy to distribute heroin, meth, cocaine and fentanyl, according to a statement from the U.S. attorney's office.

A U.S. Customs and Border Protection agent searches an automobile for contraband in the line to enter the United States at the San Ysidro Port of Entry in October 2019 in San Ysidro, Calif.

Politicians say they'll stop fentanyl smugglers. Experts say new drug war won't work

7:56am February 21, 2023

by Brian Mann

As fentanyl deaths soar, political pressure is growing to stop Mexican cartels that smuggle the drug. Experts on drug trafficking say trying to lock down the Mexican border is an impossible goal.

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The 65-year-old man — unnamed by police — tried to smuggle a more than a pound of cocaine under his toupee. He was caught by Spain's National Police shortly after disembarking from a flight arriving in Barcelona from Bogota, Colombia, in June.

World News

Drug In A Rug: Is That A Bag Of Cocaine Under Your Toupee?

7:22pm July 17, 2019

by Vanessa Romo

A Colombian man trying to sneak more than a pound of the drug into Spain was caught with the package (poorly) hidden under his fake hair, a police official told NPR.

Maria Elvira Pinto Exposto was escorted by police during a court hearing in Malaysia in December, where she was exonerated of drug smuggling charges. On Thursday an appeals court overturned the ruling and sentenced her to die by hanging.

World News

Australian Woman Sentenced To Die In Malaysia For Drug Smuggling

8:34pm May 24, 2018

by Amy Held

Lawyers are appealing the sentence and say the 54-year-old from Sydney was the victim of an online scam.

Mexican officials seized some 1,800 pounds of marijuana and a bazooka reportedly adapted to launch the drugs into the U.S. in the border town of Agua Prieta on Nov. 9.

World News

Drug-Shooting 'Bazooka' Seized In Mexico As Smugglers Aim Skyward

2:55pm November 14, 2017

by Amy Held

Mexican officials say they seized a bazooka adapted to shoot drugs alongside nearly a ton of marijuana in the town of Agua Prieta on the U.S.-Mexico border.

Nayarit state Attorney General Edgar Veytia was arrested on drug trafficking charges at the U.S.-Mexico border this week. Here, the Nayarit state attorney general's headquarters is seen in Tepic, Mexico.

U.S. Arrests Mexican State Prosecutor, Says He's Also A Drug Smuggler Named 'Diablo'

2:49pm March 30, 2017

by Bill Chappell

U.S. prosecutors say they'll seek to compel Edgar Veytia to forfeit some $250 million if he's convicted. The attorney general of Nayarit state was arrested this week in San Diego.

A car filled with bales of marijuana is seen at a police station in La Grulla, Texas, in 2013. A lot of drugs pass through the Border Patrol inspection station in Brooks County, where La Grulla is located; it, too, is refusing to take checkpoint cases.

National

At 'Checkpoint Of The Stars,' Texas Sheriff Takes A Pass On Pot Cases

7:03pm October 05, 2015

by John Burnett

The lawman says local taxpayers should not pay to house prisoners arrested for pot possession at the Sierra Blanca border checkpoint. "I'm not gonna do the federal government's job," he says.

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Jonathan Treviño poses in front of a drug bust.

National

With Corruption Rampant, Good Cops Go Bad In Texas' Rio Grande Valley

11:51am July 07, 2015

by John Burnett

How does a promising young cop go from town hero to drug trafficker? A former rogue officer details what led him to the dark side in a region known for corruption.

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Jonathan Treviño shows seized contraband. The former police narcotics squad leader is currently serving 17 years in prison for reselling narcotics back to drug dealers.

Corruption On The Border: Dismantling Misconduct In The Rio Grande Valley

11:57am July 06, 2015

by John Burnett

The FBI is cracking down on rampant corruption in the Rio Grande Valley of South Texas. With voter fraud, drug smuggling and bribery a big part of border culture, it's proving to be a difficult task.

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File photos from Jan. 2006 show Australian drug traffickers Myuran Sukumaran, left, and Andrew Chan during their trial in Bali, Indonesia. Indonesian authorities are reportedly ready to set an execution date for the pair.

World News

'Bali Nine' Ringleaders Could Face Indonesian Firing Squad Within Days

12:03pm April 25, 2015

by Scott Neuman

Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, the ringleaders of the heroin-smuggling ring, are expected to be given their execution dates on Saturday. Indonesian law requires they receive 72 hours' notice.