Border Patrol officials have caught for the the fourth time this month people attempting to smuggle a large amount of cocaine across the northbound Interstate 15,  Border Patrol spokesman Mark Endicott reported yesterday. 

The most recent interception took place on Thursday around 12:30 p.m. when a Border Patrol agent stopped a  Volkswagen Jetta near the patrol checkpoint, a little north of Temecula. 

An officer was questioning the driver and could smell a strong scent of air freshener that he assumed was used to cover up the smell of the drugs, which is very common among drug smugglers in order to deceive, said Endicott. The official requested for a canine for investigation. 

The dog successfully smelled out the drugs and led police to find the stash hidden within the Jetta. They came upon nine packages of cocaine hidden in the back seat of the vehicle and another 17 packages stored in the back bumper, amounting to a total of 69 pounds, reports Endicott.

Both the cocaine and the unidentified Mexican driver were dealt with by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the spokesman stated. 

Over all four incidents, the Border Patrol has accumulated over 275 pounds of cocaine in a matter of 17 days, compared to the 309 pounds the agency seized in three consecutive months prior as a whole, stated Edicott.