B.C. VAN DRIVER, 16, ARRESTED IN U.S.

U.S. Border Guards Allegedly Found Marijuana, Ephedrine in Teen's Vehicle

A 16-year-old boy from the Lower Mainland was arrested Wednesday by
U.S. border patrol agents when he drove into Washington state in a
vehicle alleged to contain nearly $1 million US worth of marijuana and
ephedrine.

The boy is due to appear in a Seattle court today. Neither his name
nor the municipality in which he lives have been released.

Assistant chief patrol agent Joseph Giuliano said Thursday that agents
in Linden, Wash., were told of a possible drug smuggling attempt from
Canada into the U.S. that was supposed to take place Wednesday.

Images from a surveillance camera show a 2003 Chevrolet Venture van
and a 2003 Ford Expedition crossing into the U.S. east of Sumas
shortly after daybreak Wednesday.

The boy was driving the van. When the vehicles were stopped in
Bellingham, a dog and agents found about 90 kilograms of marijuana
worth about $800,000 US and about 100 kilograms of ephedrine worth
about $110,000 US in the van, said Giuliano.

Ephedrine, widely used in cold medication, for weight loss, as an
energy booster and to enhance athletic performance, is a key
ingredient in the manufacture of methamphetamine, a highly addictive
and illegal stimulant. One kilogram of ephedrine produces about one
kilogram of meth.

The driver of the Expedition, a 26-year-old native of India and a
legal resident in the U.S., was turned over to the U.S. Drug
Enforcement Administration, Giuliano said.

A drug-sniffing dog picked up the scent of drugs in the Expedition but
investigators found no drugs.

The amount of ephedrine that was found could have been used to make
"enough meth to keep everyone in western Washington high for a month,"
Giuliano said.

"This is a two-way border," Giuliano said. "Marijuana goes south,
cocaine goes north, and guns and money go both ways," he said.