Mexican military seizes record haul of 105 tons of marijuana

Mexican authorities said Monday that they seized more than 105 tons of marijuana in the border town of Tijuana after clashing with drug traffickers.

It was the largest seizure in years amid an increasingly brutal war on drug cartels that has claimed an estimated 28,000 lives since President Felipe Calderon launched a nationwide crackdown in 2006, deploying some 50,000 troops who have so far failed to stem the tide of violence.

During Monday's seizure, soldiers and police confiscated more than 10,000 packages of marijuana in the operation across the border from San Diego, California, General Alfonso Duarte told reporters.

The drugs are worth $335 million on the Mexican street, but their worth could double or triple if sold in the US, which the traffickers had been attempting to enter, Duarte said.

The massive haul came after a shootout between Tijuana municipal police officers and gunmen in a convoy of seven vehicles. The army and state police sent reinforcements, and 11 people were arrested. Some of the drugs were found aboard the trucks.

Confessions from the detainees led security forces to more of the illegal substance at a local ranch, a home and an apartment.

AFP