Blind Mules
About the series
“Blind mule” smuggling has been a known strategy among Mexican drug traffickers for decades. The drugs are hidden in the car of an unsuspecting driver – the courier, typically someone who crosses frequently between the U.S. and Mexico – and then picked up on the U.S. side of the border – all without the driver knowing.
But the U.S. government has taken little action to warn the public about a threat that could affect those who travel in the more than 15 million personal vehicles that cross the San Ysidro Port of Entry annually. And for those innocent who get arrested at the border, their lives are irrevocably changed.
inewsource spent a year investigating this project, digging through hundreds of court files, talking to experts and uncovering the stories of those affected.
inewsource investigative reporter Sofía Mejías-Pascoe reported this project.
Series Reporting
He crossed the U.S.-Mexico border with 90 pounds of meth and had no idea. He’s not the only one
Crime experts agree that smugglers target a small fraction of border crossers to be unknowing couriers, but it’s nearly impossible to know how many are.
Cross the U.S.-Mexico border often? Here’s how to avoid becoming a ‘blind mule’
“Blind mule” smuggling – where drug traffickers plant drugs on unsuspecting border crossers before they enter the U.S. – targets frequent border crossers.
Mexican drug traffickers target unsuspecting drivers, but Feds do little to warn the public
The U.S. government has done little to warn border crossers about that risk and what they could do to protect themselves.
