Specialized agents from the Argentine Customs discovered two shipments of cocaine and MDMA valued at $10 million in the town of General Pico (La Pampa) and at the La Quiaca-Villazón International Border Crossing (Jujuy).
These discoveries of narcotics were made with effective non-intrusive control methods. According to Customs, during the vehicle inspection carried out in General pico (on National Route No. 35), the can Pyta detected MDMA, two bricks of cocaine and a firearm.
There, customs inspectors - with the collaboration of the Pampa Police - stopped a Renault Clio in which two men of Dominican nationality were traveling, and the dog Pyta began to exhibit behavior compatible with the presence of narcotics.
The occupants of the vehicle were coming from Buenos Aires and were heading south of the country. When proceeding with the corresponding search, the Customs personnel found, between the internal panels of the vehicle, nothing less than 1,4 kilograms of MDMA, wrapped in two nylon bags; two bricks of cocaine, which weighed 1,561 kilograms, and a 32 caliber revolver with five shells placed in the drum.
The estimated value of all this, which was seized by the General Directorate of Customs, amounts to $9 million. Both men were detained and placed at the disposal of the intervening magistrate.
Regarding the discovery made at the International Border Crossing La Quiaca-Villazon (border with the Plurinational State of Bolivia), customs inspectors noticed the presence of cocaine in the luggage of two people from Peru (a woman and a man) when they appeared in the lane for pedestrians entering the national territory.
After completing the immigration procedures, they submitted their luggage to the non-intrusive scanner control And it was there that the Customs inspectors observed an image that matched organic substances. Thus, they proceeded to an exhaustive control of the effects and detected the presence of a small plastic bottle, unlabeled, containing a white liquid and giving off a strong odor.
Customs officers questioned the Peruvian citizens about the contents of the bottle and the woman stated that it was an anti-flea product for dogs. However, applying a few drops of the liquid from the bottle to a reactive tissue caused it to take on a blue color – a positive reaction for cocaine.
Thus, Customs immediately intervened with the Jujuy Fiscal Unit, which instructed the arrest of both people, who had criminal records. The entity also filed a complaint for drug smuggling and decided to seize the merchandise, which consisted of 293 grams of cocaine. Its estimated value would exceed $1,3 million.
Aduana News is the first Argentine customs newspaper to launch its digital version. With 20 years of experience, its publications and initiatives aim to provide the most relevant knowledge on customs issues in order to contribute to safe trade in the region.
