Drugs Hidden In Gas Tank: Border Patrol Makes Bust Near Temecula

MURRIETA, CA — Two U.S. citizens were were taken into custody by border patrol agents Thursday near Temecula on suspicion of transporting drugs inside a vehicle's gas tank.

The men, who were not identified other than their nationality, were pulled over by the agents around 8:20 a.m. on Interstate 15, just south of Highway 79. A K-9 was commanded to sniff out the black Honda Pilot while agents questioned the two men inside the vehicle, according to U.S. Border Patrol Supervisory Agent Jeff Stephenson.

The dog alerted the agents, so a search was conducted and it turned up 63 vacuum-sealed packages inside the vehicle’s gas tank, Stephenson said.

The packages contained methamphetamine and heroin with a street value of nearly $180,000, according to Stephenson.

The two men and the drugs were turned over to the Drug Enforcement Administration.