$20 Million in Cocaine Seized; 3 Argentines Held

Three Argentine citizens were arrested and 60 pounds of cocaine were seized when U.S. customs inspectors found the drug sealed in metal containers that had been welded to the underside of a pickup truck brought by ship into Los Angeles Harbor, officials said Wednesday.

The cocaine, its value estimated at about $20 million, was seized last week by customs agents, who dismantled the truck and found the drug in the “elaborately sealed” containers under the front fenders and flatbed, Customs Service spokeswoman Alice Rigdon said.

Most of the cocaine was removed and the truck was reassembled, she said. Agents then followed the vehicle Friday and arrested Roberto del Rio, 32; Sonia Barillas del Rio, 30, and Rosa Otalan, 31. They were arraigned Monday in Los Angeles federal court on drug-smuggling charges and remain in custody. The truck, which was shipped from a port in Chile, arrived in Los Angeles on March 5 on an Argentine freighter, Rigdon said.