officers found 50 wrapped packages containing cocaine.
Police arrested a trucker on May 9, 2020, after it was found he tried to smuggle $3 million worth of cocaine into Canada.
Ajitpal Singh Sanghera, aged 41, was arrested after US Customs and Border Protection (CBP), in coordination with Homeland Security Investigations-Immigration and Customs Enforcement, stopped him at the Pacific Highway Truck Crossing in Blaine, Washington, USA.
Inside the trailer of the truck he was driving, 60 kilograms of cocaine was found, estimated to be worth $3 million.
Officers received an anonymous tip on May 7 about a truck that would be smuggling millions of dollars of cocaine across the border.
Following the arrest, officers believe that Sanghera is linked to a large international drug trafficking organisation.
The seizure of the drugs occurred during an outbound inspection when CBP officers spotted the truck and another from the same company in line at the point of entry.
Both vehicles were sent for additional examination.
Sanghera, a Canadian national, was driving the second truck. According to court documents, the truck had British Columbia plates while the trailer had Oklahoma plates.
While searching the trailer, CBP officers found five duffle bags in the rear of the trailer. Inside the duffle bags, officers found 50 wrapped packages containing cocaine.
The trucker was taken into custody following the discovery.
Sanghera was transferred over to the Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office along with the drugs.
During questioning, Sanghera admitted that he was the owner of the truck and had picked up the trailer in Seattle earlier that day.
It was reported that he also admitted that the seal placed on the back of the trailer for security and safety purposes of the load did not match the seal number on the manifest.
According to court documents, he could not explain the discrepancies in the route he used after he entered the United States.
However, Sanghera said he had been in contact with the driver of the other truck from the same company more than 10 times that day.
He also reportedly admitted to cutting the security seal off the trailer.
Officers found that Sanghera had crossed into the USA from Mexico more than 40 times since January 2020.
That, coupled with the cocaine haul, led officers to believe he was part of an international drug trafficking operation.
Sanghera was booked into Whatcom County Jail on May 10 on suspicion of a controlled substance with intent to deliver, and jail records show that his bail has been set at $100,000.
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