Kale is often touted as one of the healthiest foods on the market, but authorities in California said a shipment of what was labeled as the green cabbage was actually packed with a highly addictive stimulant.
According to reports, a semi-trailer carrying a load across the U.S.-Mexico border was stopped at the Otay Mesa Cargo Facility recently and an inspection revealed 268 packages hidden under the kale. Agents with the U.S. Customs and Border Protection tested the contents and determined that the nearly three-ton shipment contained more than $38 million worth of methamphetamine.
Agents seize three tons of meth worth $38 million at US-Mexico border https://t.co/J23pK3Bipe pic.twitter.com/CMGKATeLVc
— Daily Mail US (@DailyMail) June 1, 2023
The truck’s 34-year-old driver was placed in the custody of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, which is conducting its own investigation into the matter.
Port Director Rosa Hernandez applauded the “collaborative effort” and “remarkably inspiring” work of the CBP investigators, adding: “Our officers exemplify this every day as they dedicate themselves to protecting and serving their communities with unwavering commitment and outstanding work.”
In addition to a spike in illegal immigration, the amount of drugs being smuggled into the United States across the southern border has hit alarming rates under the administration of President Joe Biden.
Republican critics have frequently denounced his lax immigration policy, in part due to its role in exacerbating America’s drug epidemic.
Shortly after he was confirmed to the leadership position earlier this year, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) vowed that his party would act to reverse the troubling trend.
“Today more than 300 Americans will be poisoned and die from fentanyl,” he said while visiting the border in Arizona in February. “You’re looking at a place that much of it comes through. Tomorrow, there will be 300 more.”
Comparing the rate to that of an airliner crashing each day in the United States, McCarthy added: “But I promise you this, the new majority in Congress — we’re going to fight to fix this problem.”
The White House shot back, claiming that GOP efforts to assess the situation at the border were nothing more than “partisan publicity stunts” and insisted that the president is actually implementing rational policies.
“Solutions are what President Biden is focused on, and his plan is working,” White House spokesperson Ian Sams said. “House Republicans would be wise to join him to work together to strengthen our immigration system and fund border security.”
