An alert from a U.S. Border Patrol K-9 led agents at a Blythe, California, gas station to a cache of tactical weapons inside a vehicle last week. In addition to the firearms, agents seized the vehicle and arrested two individuals.
According to a U.S. Customs and Border Protection press release, while searching a Honda CR-V after the K-9 alert in the evening of June 12, Blythe Station agents found 25 AK-47 style rifles, 25 30-round magazines, and two pistols, which may have been en route to Mexico.
The press release states that the two occupants arrested include a 25-year-old male U.S. citizen and a male juvenile. Local law enforcement will keep them in custody while the investigation continues.
The seizure, one of the largest in the agency’s recent Yuma Sector history, was conducted under Operation Apollo, according to the press release. Operation Apollo is a holistic counter-fentanyl initiative that launched last fall. It began in Southern California and has since expanded to Arizona.
"Transnational Criminal Organizations traffic weapons to fuel their illicit activity on both sides of the border. This weapons seizure clearly demonstrates the importance of our Border Security mission and commitment of keeping our communities safe," Yuma Sector Chief Patrol Agent Sean McGoffin said in the press release.
