Shout out to the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) for getting $5 million of meth off the streets. A traffic stop with an average Dodge Ram pickup truck led to the discovery of 175 lbs of methamphetamine. 

Texas DPS find $5 million worth of meth in a pickup truck 

What started as an average traffic stop on IH-35 in Webb County, Texas turned into a massive drug bust. Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) troops found $5 million worth of meth hidden in a pickup truck. 

The troopers confiscated 175 pounds of meth that’s estimated to be worth about $5,712,000 on the street. A Mexican citizen has been arrested and charged with felony possession of a controlled substance. 

What’s crazy is that the drug was found hidden in an old Dodge Ram truck. It seems like those older bare-bones models don’t have much space to work with. But the meth was discovered in a false compartment of the bed with 57 cellophane-wrapped bundles. 

For a bit of history, the Dodge Ram pickup truck became Ram 1500 in 2009. Anyways, According to Newsweek, those caught with less than one gram of meth face up to two years in jail with a fine of up to $10,000. 

Texas has some of the toughest penalties for methamphetamine possession in the country. The most intense penalties are reserved for those with amounts over 400 grams. 

Individuals caught with over 400 grams face 10 to 99 years behind bars and a maximum fine of up to $100,000. 

Texas Governor, Greg Abbott helped launch the $11 million Operation Lone Star initiative in 2021 to help with illegal immigration. DPS troops have been deployed to counter smuggling operations along the border. 

Criminals have been getting pretty creative with smuggling with the use of a pickup truck. Recently, Customers and Border Protection (CBP) officers found $17 million worth of meth in a shipment of coconuts. 

About $5 million worth of meth was found inside of watermelons too. Plus, a tractor-trailer was heading 1,950 lbs of methamphetamine.