CBP Officers Prevent ‘Date-Rape’ Drug Smuggling Attempt In Southern Arizona

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Nogales, Ariz. — Local Customs and Border Protection officers assigned to the Tucson Field Office, a component of CBP’s Joint Field Command – Arizona, arrested a local woman yesterday on drug charges involving the smuggling of a strong animal tranquilizer also known as a date-rape drug.

Officers at the Dennis DeConcini Port referred the 25-year-old Nogales woman for secondary questioning after she attempted to enter the United States through a pedestrian lane. When officers searched the subject, they found 10 packages containing five bottles each of Ketamine. The subject was arrested into custody and the drugs were processed for seizure.

The Drug Enforcement Administration identifies Ketamine as a clear odorless, tasteless liquid developed in the early 1960s to replace Phencyclidine (PCP) as an anesthetic. Ketamine became popular as a “date rape drug” during the past 10-15 years.

Individuals arrested are charged with a criminal complaint, which raises no inference of guilt. An individual is presumed innocent until competent evidence is presented to a jury that establishes guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

CBP announced the JFC-AZ in February 2011 as an organizational realignment that brings together the Tucson and Yuma Border Patrol Sectors and their Air Branches, as well as the Tucson Field Office, under a unified command structure. JFC-AZ integrates CBP’s border security, commercial enforcement and trade facilitation missions to more effectively meet the unique challenges faced in Arizona. Follow us on Twitter @CBPArizona or visit us at CBP Arizona for more information.

CBP's Office of Field Operations is the primary organization within Homeland Security tasked primarily with an anti-terrorism mission at our nation’s ports. CBP officers screen all people, vehicles and goods entering the United States while facilitating the flow of legitimate trade and travel. Their mission also includes carrying out border-related duties, including narcotics interdiction, enforcing immigration and trade laws, and protecting the nation's food supply and agriculture industry from pests and diseases.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control and protection of our nation's borders at and between the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.