Border patrol seizes 44 pounds of meth hidden inside Halloween pumpkins

U.S. Customs and Border Protection seized nearly 44 pounds of methamphetamine hidden inside Halloween decorations at the southwest border in Eagle Pass, Texas.

The alleged liquid methamphetamine was stored inside condoms hidden within pumpkins. The total value of the seized drugs was estimated to be more than $400,000, officials said.

“Our frontline CBP officers have seen just about everything and this Tuesday was no exception as they encountered liquid methamphetamine hidden within pumpkins,” acting Port Director Elizabeth Garduno said in a statement.

“They utilized their training, experience, interviewing skills and uncovered a rather novel narcotics smuggling method in the process,” she added.

The drugs were discovered on Tuesday, Oct. 11, by CBP officers assigned to Eagle Pass Camino Real International Bridge, a point of entry into the United States. At the bridge, the officers encountered a 2012 Ford Escape arriving from Mexico, which they referred for further inspection.

After conducting a search of the vehicle, they seized what authorities said were nearly 44 pounds of liquid methamphetamine concealed within 136 condoms inside four pumpkins in the vehicle.

The driver and passenger were arrested and turned over to the custody of the Maverick County sheriff's office, officials said.

"Great work by our frontline officers and way to carve out those illegal narcotics," CBP Laredo Field Office Director Randy Howe said on Twitter.

Methamphetamine is a stimulant that speeds up the body's system. It typically comes as a pill or powder that is smoked or snorted to produce a high, according to the Drug Enforcement Administration. Crystal meth resembles glass fragments or shiny blue-white rocks of various sizes. The drug is highly addictive, and overdose may result in death from heart attack, stroke, or multiple organ failure.

In an operational update for the month of August, CBP reported a 44% decrease in methamphetamine seizures, while cocaine and fentanyl seizures both increased. Overall drug seizures by weight including cocaine, methamphetamine, heroin, fentanyl, and marijuana were up 1.4% in August compared to July.

An update for September has not yet been released.

In 2021, CBP officials seized 192,000 pounds of methamphetamine at the border. So far this fiscal year the agency has confiscated 161,000 pounds of the drug.

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