Salton City, California - El Centro Sector Border Patrol agents assigned to the Highway 86 checkpoint, arrested a man suspected of smuggling methamphetamine inside a van engine compartment Wednesday morning.

The incident occurred at approximately 12:40 a.m., when agents stopped a 24-year-old man in a 2003 Ford Windstar approximately six miles north of the Highway 86 checkpoint. A Border Patrol summoned a canine detection team to the scene for further inspection of the van. The canine alerted to the front of the vehicle.

Upon further search of the vehicle, Border Patrol agents found four packages stuffed inside the vehicle’s engine. Agents tested the contents of the packages. That test indicated positive for characteristics of methamphetamine.

The total weight of the methamphetamine was 8.95 pounds with an estimated street value of $22,375.

The man, a United States citizen, the vehicle and narcotics were turned-over to the Drug Enforcement Administration for further investigation.