In what the Drug Enforcement Agency called “one of the most sophisticated drug smuggling cases it’s ever seen,” big dozer attachments were used to smuggle marijuana into Ohio, according to a report from 10tv.com. The DEA ended up arresting three men for smuggling more than 1 ton of marijuana into the state using ripper attachments.
And Ohio’s is not an isolated case. In West Texas there were two incidents of a trailer hauling attachments being seized in April alone. The first load was smuggled inside a bulldozer blade and the second, worth an estimated $1.9 million, was brought in inside plow rippers.
This method of smuggling is surprisingly effective. Most of these big castings are done south of our border. Almost all the OEMs use Latin American foundries, since they’re cheaper and less hampered by environmental restrictions.
There are a lot of these castings coming over the border, heading north every day. What border or customs official is going to drill into your attachments to check for drugs?
It might be time for the OEMs to have a little quality control conversation with their suppliers.