Border Patrol agents arrest man with 8 pounds of heroin at checkpoint

SAN CLEMENTE, Calif.- U.S. Border Patrol agents arrested a man last night who had more than eight pounds of heroin hidden under the hood of his car.

At approximately 4:30 p.m., a 26-year-old male Mexican national arrived at the I-5 checkpoint driving a 1995 blue Saturn. The man was referred to secondary inspection, where a K-9 sniff of the Saturn resulted in an alert. When agents searched the vehicle, they observed an oversized battery under the hood.

They opened the battery case and found a motorcycle battery next to three vacuum-sealed bricks of heroin.

The heroin weighed approximately 8.93 pounds and has an estimated street value of $107,160.

Agents arrested the man and turned him over to agents from the Drug Enforcement Administration. The vehicle was seized by the U.S. Border Patrol.