There was more than air in the tires of a Ford Ranger pickup truck that a man on Wednesday drove to the Hidalgo port of entry.
During an inspection, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers found steel welded compartments bolted onto the rims of the tires where officers discovered 24 aluminum wrapped packages containing approximately 76.5 pounds of methamphetamine, according to a criminal complaint.
Homeland Security Investigations special agents charged Fabian Treviño, a United States citizen born in 2001, with possession with intent to distribute the meth.
A complaint against the man said CBP detained him at about 1:17 p.m. after finding the drugs hidden in the four tires on his vehicle.
The officials discovered the narcotics with the use of an X-ray, which revealed anomalies in the tires.
“During the search, CBP officers removed the tires and cut them open. Inside the tires were steel welded compartments bolted onto the rim of the tire,” the complaint said.
HSI said Treviño waived his Miranda rights and said he knew he was transporting drugs.
“During the interview, Treviño admitted that he was transporting drugs into the United States for an individual that he knew was a drug dealer,” the complaint said. “Treviño admitted that the unknown individual gave him the vehicle that morning and told him to drive the vehicle into the United States.”
Once in the country, the man was supposed to take the truck to a Wal-Mart or H-E-B parking lot where he would drop it off for other people to take possession of it, according to the complaint.
Federal agents said Treviño expected to be paid approximately $3,000.
He was scheduled for a first appearance Thursday morning in front of U.S. Magistrate Judge Nadia S. Medrano.
