Customs officials at Del Rio Port of Entry recently apprehended a sizeable haul of weapons and ammunition during a routine vehicle check, interrupting what might have been a silent march of lethal means into tumultuous terrains. On a regular day near the border, where inspectors look for contraband as common as cacti in the desert, they unearthed a more ominous cargo.
Port Director Liliana Flores summarized the find, "Every weapon and round of ammunition seized represents a potential threat neutralized. As this seizure illustrates, we will continue to leverage every resource to deter and disrupt illegal activities that threaten public safety," according to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection news release.
The cache, found on December 21, included two weapons, nine magazines, 1,389 rounds of ammunition, and one gun sight. These were cunningly concealed within a 2016 Chevrolet passenger van, and its utility trailer, destined for Mexico. The vehicle was first flagged for a nonintrusive inspection system scan and further examined by canine units. The commodities within which these items were stashed seemed innocuous, but served as a shadow theater for the clandestine movement of potential violence.
What followed the discovery was a deft seizure by CBP officers, the collection of these instruments of harm now in the hands of U.S. authorities. Homeland Security Investigations special agents have since stepped into the daunting nexus of this event and initiated a criminal investigation. The shadowy transfer of weaponized items now lay bare in the hands of those who stand guard over peace and law, each round of ammunition and each magazine a story of a crisis averted, a "potential threat neutralized," as mentioned on the U.S. Customs and Border Protection website.
