San Diego News Online

San Diego, California - United States Customs and Border Protection officers at the Otay Mesa port of entry Saturday night caught a murder suspect as he was attempting to leave the United States and enter Mexico.

Just before 1:30 a.m., the San Diego County Sheriff’s department notified CBP officers at nearby ports of entry to be on the lookout for a white Ford F-150, driven by Hector Cortes, a man accused of fatally stabbing his roommate in San Marcos, Calif., and thought to be possibly heading for Mexico.

Approximately five minutes later, while conducting southbound inspections at the Otay Mesa port of entry, CBP officers observed a white Ford truck matching the description provided by the Sheriff’s department, and pulled it over for further inspection.

Based on information provided by the Sheriff’s department, CBP officers identified the driver as Hector Cortes, and turned custody of the suspect and his truck over to Sheriff’s deputies.

“This apprehension underscores the importance of our law enforcement presence on the southbound lanes leading out of the U.S.,” said Paul Morris, director of Field Operations for CBP in San Diego. “Our vigilance in this case has prevented a suspected murderer from fleeing justice in this country and seeking safe haven in Mexico."

Also this weekend, officers conducting southbound operations at the San Ysidro port of entry Sunday morning seized almost $25,000 in undeclared currency being taken out of the country in two separate incidents, stopping a woman with more than $10,000 in her pockets at about 6:45 a.m., and another woman with almost $13,500 dollars in her vehicle at about 9:20 a.m.

Over the course of the weekend, CBP officers at ports of entry along the California-Mexico border also stopped 14 persons with warrants for their arrest from entering the U.S., as well as numerous narcotic smuggling and illegal immigration attempts. In addition to the murder suspect, the warrant charges included stolen vehicles, dangerous drugs, probation violations, and more.

Officers also caught several pedestrians with narcotics strapped to their bodies, or hidden within their bodies this weekend, including a 19-year-old female caught with heroin at the San Ysidro port of entry, and another 19-year-old female caught with methamphetamine and cocaine at the downtown Calexico port of entry.

All together, officers this weekend seized more than a half ton of marijuana, heroin, methamphetamine, and cocaine with a street value more than $2 million.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control and protection of our nation's borders at and between the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.