200 Pounds of Methamphetamine Discovered by Airbnb Cleaning Crew

(USNewsMag.com) – An Airbnb cleaning crew in California uncovered an enormous stash of methamphetamine last weekend, the latest massive recovery of narcotics amid the ongoing southern border crisis.

According to law enforcement in Alhambra, California, a cleaning crew working at an Airbnb stumbled upon a giant stash of methamphetamine weighing approximately 235 pounds. According to a social media post from the Alhambra Police Department (APD), when officers showed up at the scene they inspected the narcotics packages. The APD said the narcotics were being transported with a rented U-Haul van, which was captured on RING camera.

That footage showed two individuals using the truck to move the drugs to the location. After the stash was discovered, unbeknownst to the two suspects, the van later returned to the 1400 block residence on South Ethel Avenue. Finding police on the scene, the U-Haul made a swift U-turn and fled the area, after which authorities pursued the vehicle and arrested the two suspects under suspicion of transporting the narcotics.

The call from the cleaning crew came in just before noon on Friday, May 24th, when they found several boxes filled with sealed packages of the drug. Alhambra Police Sgt. Efren Tamayo confirmed that the confiscation amounted to over 200 pounds.

Efren did not specify if the crew opened the boxes and knew what was inside before calling in the tip, nor whether or not the stash was forgotten or placed there temporarily on purpose to be transported again at a later time. He also did not specify if the two suspects were staying as guests at the Airbnb, if they owned the property, or if they had some other connection to the business.

Weeks before the discovery, a Long Beach neighborhood banned property owners from renting out their properties on Airbnb unsupervised, citing concerns about loud, drug-fueled parties disrupting the peace in the area. The discovery also comes amid growing concern amongst Americans about drug smuggling over the southern border amid the ongoing immigration crisis.