Customs: 766 pounds of pot found hidden in broccoli shipment

PHARR, Texas, March 24 (UPI) -- U.S. Customs and Border Protection said a shipment of fresh broccoli was seized in Texas when officers discovered it was hiding a different form of greenery -- 766 pounds of marijuana.

The agency said officers with the Office of Field Operations at the Pharr International Bridge cargo facility inspected a semi truck hauling a shipment of fresh broccoli from Mexico Tuesday and discovered 661 packages of marijuana -- a total 766 pounds -- hidden among the vegetables.

"I commend our frontline officers at our cargo facility for their dedication and commitment towards the CBP mission of helping keep drugs from crossing our border," Port Director Efrain Solis Jr. said. "Our ability to analyze all the information presented with commercial importations in conjunction with officer experience, is the basis for accomplishing these type of interceptions."

Customs officers estimated the street value of the marijuana at about $153,000.

The investigation is ongoing, CPB said.