Cocaine worth 1,002 lbs found hidden in rebar truck at California border

A truck carrying 269 bundles of rebar reached California’s Calexico Port of Entry with what looked like a routine commercial load. But when federal officers inspected the trailer, X-rays revealed a much bigger problem: more than 1,000 pounds of cocaine hidden beneath the floorboards of the attached flatbed, as per a press release shared by the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).Authorities say the narcotics had an estimated street value of more than $20 million. The truck’s driver, 44-year-old Jose Manuel Lopez Lopez, was arrested after officers found 366 packages tucked inside the trailer.The case has now become one of the biggest cocaine seizures in Southern California this year, and a reminder that even ordinary-looking freight can be used to conceal major contraband.How officers found the drugsAccording to the U.S. Department of Justice, Customs and Border Protection officers sent the trailer through an X-ray scan during a border inspection. The scan showed anomalies in the wooden floorboards, prompting officers to investigate further.A drug-sniffing dog then alerted to the vehicle, giving officers another reason to dig deeper. Investigators unloaded the rebar ...