A 26-year-old man from Tijuana, Mexico is in custody after Customs and Border Protection officers found nearly 1,000 pounds of liquid methamphetamine hidden inside the fuel tank of the tractor trailer he was attempting to drive into the United States.
Officials with the U.S. Department of Justice said in a news release that the March 2 discovery happened just before 11:30 a.m. at the Otay Mesa Import Cargo Facility, a border crossing approximately 22 miles south of San Diego.
U.S.-Mexico border crossing near San Diego seen in this undated image from Google Maps.
Oscar Alonzo Cesena Camacho was traveling on a business visa when he pulled into the facility behind the wheel of a 2019 Kenworth tractor trailer, officials said.
During an inspection of the vehicle, a CBP officer spotted a white crystalline substance on top of the passenger-side fuel tank.
A white crystalline powder on the passenger-side fuel tank that prompted the further inspection of the vehicle’s gas tanks at the Otay Mesa Import Cargo Facility on March 2, 2026. (U.S. Attorney’s Office)
“Further inspection of the vehicle resulted in the discovery of 29 buckets-worth of liquid concealed in the passenger-side fuel tank of the vehicle, with a total approximate weight of 944.4 pounds,” the U.S. Attorney’s office said. “A sample of the substance contained within the fuel tank tested positive for the characteristics of methamphetamine.”
Orange County deputy fatally shot fiancée in head at close range, prosecutors say
Cesena Camacho was taken into custody and appeared in court on March 3, where Magistrate Judge Jill L. Burkhardt deemed the 26-year-old a flight risk and ordered that he be held without bail.
He’s facing a maximum sentence of life in prison, with a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years and a $10 million fine and is due to appear in court again on March 17.
Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTLA.