A man named Christopher Herman Barrio has been arrested and is facing serious federal charges after allegedly attempting to bring 38.5 pounds of cocaine through an El Paso border crossing.
Barrio was arrested on Jan. 22 at the Paso del Norte International Bridge in a car. A Customs and Border Protection officer became suspicious when Barrio avoided eye contact and gripped the steering wheel more tightly during questioning.
The officer directed the gray Acura MDX, which had Texas plates and was carrying Barrio, a woman, and three children, to a secondary inspection area. During the inspection, the officers noticed fresh paint on the car's undercarriage, which led to the discovery of the cocaine, the Border Report mentioned.
According to an affidavit filed on Jan. 23 in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas, the officers found a hidden compartment under the vehicle's rear seats. Inside, they discovered 15 bundles of a white powdery substance.
Each bundle weighed just over a kilogram and was later confirmed to be cocaine.
According to court documents, Barrio, who had a Texas ID card, agreed to speak with Homeland Security Investigations agents. He reportedly admitted that a criminal group in Juarez, Mexico, had paid him $1,500 to smuggle drugs into the U.S.
He also confessed to previously smuggling a smaller amount of drugs and delivering them to a store parking lot in El Paso. Barrio told the agents he was working for the La Linea drug cartel, as stated in a federal arrest affidavit filed with U.S. Magistrate Judge Miguel Angel Torres. A detention hearing for Barrio is set for Jan. 29 in U.S. District Court in El Paso.
In the 2024 fiscal year, Customs and Border Protection's Office of Field Operations seized 1,561 pounds of cocaine in the El Paso area.
They also confiscated 378 pounds of fentanyl and 4,538 pounds (2.27 tons) of methamphetamine. The amount of meth seized marked a 50% increase compared to the 2023 fiscal year.
Aside from this, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety, three people were arrested at an apartment complex in El Paso's Lower Valley on Jan. 17, after they were found in possession of firearms and cocaine.
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