Drugs found in a bag of potato chips

U.S. Customs and Border Protection has arrested a Corpus Christi man who tried to drive across an international bridge with more than $262,000 in cocaine, some of it hidden in a bag of potato chips, officials said.

Robert Andrew Quiroga, 63, was arrested Monday night at B&M International Bridge by CBP field operations officers and later charged with possession with intent to distribute cocaine, according to court documents.

On Tuesday morning, Quiroga went before U.S. Magistrate Judge Felix Recio who ordered he be held without bond pending a detention hearing and remanded him to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.

The arrest took place after Quiroga drove a 1998 Dodge Stratus to an inspection booth at the bridge and was referred to a secondary inspection area, said a CBP press release.

In the secondary inspection area, officers noticed an "unusually heavy" potato chip bag and discovered a small package containing cocaine. Officers also found a two-ounce bag in a pocket of Quiroga’s coat, CBP said.

Officers used a narcotics detecting canine that alerted them to the presence of narcotics in the vehicle, the release said.

Inside the car’s dashboard and doors officers found nine packages containing more than eight pounds of cocaine with a street value of $262,000, CBP said.

"When you think you have seen it all, Brownsville CBP officers find another place would-be smugglers are trying to use to bring in their narcotics," said CBP Port Director Michael Freeman.