Tijuana, Baja California — A man who intended to enter Mexico with over $51,000 USD in cash has been arrested. The arrest was made Tuesday at the Baja California border after Mexican Customs Agents located the hidden cash.
Members of the National Guard (GN), in coordination with the National Customs Agency of Mexico (ANAM), detained the American, who the government says “intended to enter national territory with more than $51,000 USD without declaring it.”
The cash was found hidden in shoes and among clothing in a Tijuana border crossing check. The man arrived at the Puerta México Este border crossing on foot as a pedestrian. According to the government statement, he was carrying three pieces of luggage.
“As part of the security protocols to enter Mexico, officers asked the pedestrian to enter his luggage into an X-ray machine, where they visually detected irregular densities.
“Due to the foregoing, and in order to rule out the transfer of illicit merchandise to Mexican territory, National Guard carried out a detailed inspection of the backpacks and located various wads of U.S. dollars inside sports shoes and in bags with clothing.
“Members of both institutions carried out the currency count, resulting in the approximate amount of $51,350 U.S. dollars, equivalent to about 872,000 Mexican pesos, which were not declared in the official forms approved by the Tax Administration Service (SAT), thereby violating Article 9 of the Customs Law, for which he was arrested,” they detailed in a statement.
