Mexican-bound weapons, ammo seized during traffic stop

EL PASO, Texas (Border Report) — A traffic stop led to the seizure of a weapons and ammo cache that border authorities say was bound for Mexico.

Agents from the Indio Station conducted the July 1 traffic on Interstate 10 in nearby Chiricao Summit, where a Border Patrol K-9 alerted them to the vehicle.

Agents said they found one duffle bag in the back seat and one in the truck, both filled with weapons and ammunition.

In all, agents found 28 rifles, one handgun, 30 high-capacity magazines, and 2,210 rounds of ammunition of various calibers, according to a U.S. Customs and Border Protection news release.

Agents arrested the male driver, a U.S. citizen, and turned him and the vehicle and weapons over to a local law enforcement task force, the release said.

Gregory Bovino, the chief patrol agent for the Border Patrol’s El Centro Sector, praised his agents for an “excellent arrest,” adding that the weapons were headed south of the border.

“Smugglers are all cut from the same dirty cloth. They’ll do anything for profit, including trafficking children, drugs, or, in this case, weapons …” Bovino said. “Conversely, our agents are forged differently — winners, ready to take it to criminals anywhere, anytime, anyplace.”

CBP said the weapons seizure was the result of a counter-fentanyl effort dubbed Operation Apollo, in which federal authorities, including CBP officers and Border Patrol agents, have teamed up with state, local, tribal, and territorial partners to boost resources, increase collaboration, and target the smuggling of fentanyl into the United States. It began in Southern California last October and expanded to Arizona in April.

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