Accused Mexican smuggler caught with 1,000 pounds of liquid …

A Mexican citizen accused of trying to smuggle a half ton of liquid methamphetamine hidden in a truck’s fuel tank at the California border is facing life in prison.

Alonzo Cesena Camacho, 26, of Tijuana, Mexico, had nearly 1,000 pounds of liquid meth concealed inside a commercial tractor-trailer’s fuel tank when he was caught last week during a routine inspection at the San Diego border, prosecutors said.

Camacho was trying to smuggle the drugs into the US at the Otay Mesa Import Cargo Facility last Monday when Customs and Border Protection officers noticed a white, crystalline substance on top of his truck’s fuel tank, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.

Officers conducted a follow-up search of Camacho’s truck and found 29 buckets of liquid meth hidden inside the passenger-side fuel tank, totaling nearly 995 pounds, authorities said. A sample of the liquid tested positive for methamphetamine.

Camacho was attempting to enter the US on a business visa and told officers he planned to leave the truck in a parking lot in Otay Mesa in exchange for $1,000, according to a criminal complaint filed in San Diego federal court. 

Federal officers arrested Camacho and prosecutors charged him with importation of a controlled substance under federal law.

He faces 10 years to life in prison and a fine of up to $10 million.

Federal Judge Jill L. Burkhardt last Tuesday ordered the accused smuggler held without bail, citing a flight risk.

Camacho is set to appear in court for a preliminary hearing on March 17 and for his arraignment on March 26.

Camacho’s attorney couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office said the Department of Homeland Security and Customs and Border Protection are leading an investigation into the case.

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