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Border Patrol agents in southern Arizona seized 4,585 pounds of marijuana from three abandoned SUVs in separate incidents on the same day, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials reported.
All of the seizures Monday took place a couple of hours west of Tucson.
“Frustrated smugglers often abandon their contraband in hopes of eluding apprehension and subsequent prosecution,” officials said in a statement.
In the first incident, agents patrolling in all-terrain vehicles near the town of Why discovered an abandoned Chevy Suburban filled with 85 bundles of pot -- an estimated $862,000 value, officials said.
Later in Monday, agents spotted and followed vehicle tire tracks to a wash and found an abandoned 2003 Chevy Tahoe loaded with 66 bundles of marijuana -- a $670,000 value.
That same night, agents working near the town of Pia Oik found another abandoned 2003 Chevy Tahoe hiding in dense brush. Inside they found 76 bundles of marijuana -- worth about $760,500, officials reported.
The vehicles and drugs were taken to the Border Patrol Station in Ajo, Ariz., and were expected to be turned over to the Drug Enforcement Administration.
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cindy.carcamo@latimes.com