CONSULATE WORKER ARRESTED WITH POT

U.S. customs agents arrested a Mexican consulate employee in Nogales on
Thursday night on suspicion of smuggling 268 pounds of marijuana across the
border.

Drug-sniffing dogs picked up the scent of the narcotic concealed in the
man's 1988 Dodge Caravan at about 6:45 p.m. at the Grand Avenue border
crossing in downtown Nogales. The 43-year-old Nogales, Sonora, man was
being held on suspicion of possession of a narcotics with intent to
distribute and importation of a controlled substance. The man was expected
to be arraigned in federal court in Tucson this afternoon, said Roger
Maier, a spokesman for the U.S. Customs Service in El Paso.

Maier did not know the type of job that the suspect held with the Mexican
consulate's office in Nogales, Arizona. He sought to downplay the connection.

"The real key here is that the discovery was made by a drug-sniffing dog,"
Maier said.

Customs agents found 27 bundles of marijuana stuffed under seats throughout
the van. Maier called the discovery a "pretty good sized load," adding that
typical seizures are around 50 or 100 pounds.

Authorities say the Arizona-Mexico border has become af funnel for drugs as
U.S. law enforcement agencies have cracked down on smuggling in California
and Texas.