Authorities seize over 54 pounds of cocaine worth $730,000 at South Texas Port of entry

The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials revealed Tuesday that more than 54 pounds of cocaine, worth over $730,000, was seized at a port of entry in South Texas.

CBP officers on Monday seized this large quantity of cocaine at the Falcon Dam port of entry, which was located at the Falcon Dam International Reservoir in Starr County, Texas.

Following the seizure, Roma Port Director Andres Guerra said, "Our frontline officers at the Falcon Dam crossing maintained strict vigilance, applied their training, experience, canines, technology and the end result was a significant seizure of cocaine," Border Report reported.

"Seizures like these exemplify CBP's commitment to advancing our border security mission while facilitating lawful trade and travel."

Officers said the drugs were found with the help of sniffer dogs and scanning technology at the port, as the cocaine was hidden inside a newer MG5 car, which officers had sent for a closer inspection.

Earlier this week, the CBP had revealed that arrests at the Southwest border increased marginally from July to August, but stayed low compared to other times during the Biden administration, as border agents had 58,038 encounters between border crossings in August, up from 56,399 in July.

Last year in December, border arrests hit a record high with 249,741 arrests.

"CBP continues to enforce the Securing the Border interim final rule and deliver strong consequences for illegal entry, and encounters between ports of entry remain at their lowest level in years," Acting CBP Commissioner Troy A. Millers said.

"Through the work of our dedicated personnel, this enhanced enforcement posture is meaningfully disrupting the operations of deadly transnational criminal organizations."

Earlier this month, former Mexican police officer Rene Hernandez-Cordero, who was also a member of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), was sentenced to 25 years in prison for various crimes, including conspiracy to distribute meth.

In July, a group of three bipartisan House members introduced a bill, "Stop Fentanyl at the Border Act," to reduce the flow of fentanyl at the U.S. southern border.

The bill proposes allocating over $5 billion to increase staffing and technology to detect illegal drugs, weapons and other contraband being smuggled across the U.S.-Mexico border.