OFFICIALS THINK FAKE AGENTS SEIZED POT

Mexican authorities suspect that drug traffickers made off with a
truck loaded with 12 tons of marijuana, possibly with the unwitting
aid of local police.

Two days later, the seizure of nearly 14,000 pounds of pot at the U.S.
Border Patrol checkpoint at San Clemente had narcotics investigators
in the United States wondering if they were dealing with at least part
of the same drug load.

The incident in Mexico occurred Wednesday when Rosarito Beach police
received a request to intercept a truck. They did so, and then turned
the vehicle over to people who were apparently posing as Mexican
federal agents.

Fernando Serrano, public safety director in Rosarito Beach, later told
the Mexican news media that his officers didn't know what was in the
truck. The marijuana that was later determined to be inside is
believed to be worth at least $6 million on the West Coast.

Mexican federal investigators said they didn't learn of the incident
until someone called their offices anonymously, wanting the truck
back. No federal agents were even assigned to Rosarito Beach that day,
the investigators told reporters.

It's common for drug traffickers and other organized crime groups in
Mexico to disguise themselves as police officers or narcotics agents,
complete with phony uniforms and identification.

The drugs, which are the equivalent of 24,000 pounds, would be worth
between $6 million and $9.6 million in San Diego County, according to
figures provided by the Drug Enforcement Administration. They would be
worth three times that on the East Coast.

Meanwhile, Border Patrol agents at the San Clemente checkpoint on
Interstate 5 grew suspicious yesterday after they ordered a truck
driver into secondary inspection with his 18-wheeler.

"They asked him what he was hauling and he said, 'I don't know,' "
said Border Patrol agent Steve McPartland. "That's when they put a
canine on the truck to check it."

The driver may not have known what was in his trailer, but the dog
did, McPartland said.