Some could say that the new Ford Fusions models are ‘dope’. Others would say that is exactly what was found inside them when authorities claimed to have found over one million dollars in marijuana inside the brand new vehicles.
The brand new Ford Fusion cars were assembled and manufactured at the Ford plant in Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico, and then were shipped by railroad into a CSX yard in Lordstown, Ohio.
After the strange and somewhat shocking discovery, however, law enforcement from both local, state, and federal levels are trying to discover how going through the supply line the marijuana was packed into the cars, and who failed to retrieve it, or whether that was done intentionally.
Silverio Balzano, Agent in charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration's Youngstown office, said that “Clearly, something went wrong.” Balzano said. "Generally speaking, they could take it off anywhere else along the way."
Upon arrival to their lot, a dealership in Youngstown claims to have discovered the marijuana between July 7th and July 11th, Balzano said, packed into the vehicles in the odd shape of half-moons and placed into the wheel wells for the vehicles' spare tires.
Each of the individual wheels weighed approximately 32 pounds. Various lots which received the same transport of the Ford Fusions, after being notified by authorities, checked and also claim marijuana was found in 15 cars in four counties in Ohio, Balzano said, and a couple even surfaced in Pennsylvania.
Balzano said surprisingly enough this was not the first time in his career he's heard of marijuana hidden inside new cars shipped from Mexico.
"This is the first time I've seen it locally," he said, “but similar seizures were made earlier this year in Minnesota and the Phoenix area.”
A spokesman for the Ford Motor Company stated that "We're aware of the situation and are taking it very seriously. We are working with the FBI and Customs on an extensive investigation. We have confirmed that this is not happening at our plant or at our internal shipping yards."
A CSX railroad spokesman could not be reached for comment, but it seems incredibly unlikely that the marijuana was placed by their industry or someone inside because it was still on the vehicles when transported to the dealerships.
Local police, alongside the Portage County Sheriff's Drug Task Force, will be working with the DEA in the investigation to determine the origins of the marijuana.
Source
http://www.ksl.com/?sid=45048728&nid=157&title=1m-in-marijuana-found-in-brand-new-ford-fusions
