Border patrol seizes over 600 pounds of meth hidden in celery shipment

Officers of U.S. Customs and Border Protection intercepted methamphetamine worth $755,000 and concealed in shipment of U.S.-bound celery, the agency said Monday.

The drugs found Aug. 9 weighed 629.72 pounds. 

CBP agents at the Otay Mesa Commercial Facility in San Diego, "encountered a 34-year-old man driving a commercial tractor-trailer, seeking entry into the United States from Mexico," according to a CBP press release.

The man reportedly had valid border crossing credentials.

After routine inspections, CBP officers ordered the driver and vehicle "to secondary inspection for a more thorough examination."

CBP officers offloaded boxes of celery "for closer scrutiny." A K-9 unit screened the boxes and "quickly alerted officers to the presence of narcotics."

A physical inspection "uncovered 508 packages hidden among the celery."

"Testing confirmed the packages contained methamphetamine," CBP said.