A Customs and Border Patrol K-9 uncovered a 192-pound stash of fentanyl near Yuma, Arizona, on Thursday, enough to kill 48 million Americans.
The fentanyl worth an estimated street value of more than $2 million was discovered inside a vehicle at a CBP checkpoint on Interstate 8 just east of Yuma, according to a tweet by Chief Patrol Agent Patricia McGurk-Daniel of the Yuma Sector.
"Following a K-9 alert, Yuma Sector Border Patrol agents found more [than] $2 million worth of fentanyl at a checkpoint along Interstate 8 near Yuma," McGurk-Daniel wrote. "The narcotics totaled more than 192 pounds, enough to kill 48 million people. #TheNoseKnows #OnePillCanKill #YumaSector"
According to images posted by McGurk-Daniel with her tweet, the drugs were stored in packages concealed behind the backs of seats in what appears to be an extended cabin pickup truck.
KSAZ-TV in Phoenix reported drugs were also found inside the doors and in the gas tank.
Customs and Border Patrol data showed fentanyl seizures increased 14% in April compared to March and that they have increased more than 400% from fiscal year 2019 to fiscal year 2023. Seizures of fentanyl this year have already surpassed totals for the 2022 fiscal year. The CBP seized more than 17,000 pounds of fentanyl from October through April compared with about 6,600 pounds from October 2021 through April 2022.
The total weight seized in this encounter is more than the entire amount of fentanyl seized in the Yuma Sector in each of the past three fiscal years, according to CBP data.
The National Institutes of Health said there were 106,699 drug-involved overdose deaths reported in the U.S. in 2021, and that synthetic opioids such as fentanyl were the main driver with a nearly 7.5-fold increase from 2015 to 2021.