Federal agents seize 277 pounds of marijuana from rail cars in Detroit

Federal agents seized 277 pounds of marijuana hidden in rail cars used to transport Ford and Lincoln vehicles recently imported from Mexico.

According to US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the marijuana was found a day earlier by employees at the Ford Rail Distribution Facility in the Detroit suburb of Woodhaven. Some 200 vehicles were then searched by Federal, state and local officials.

No arrests were made.

ICE offered no details about the place of origin of the rail shipment in Mexico or the place where the cars were produced.

According to ICE, Ford was cooperating fully with the investigation.

Authorities had, earlier this month, said over 400 pounds (181 kilograms) of marijuana was found in 15 new cars made in Mexico and shipped to Ohio and Pennsylvania for sale.

Earlier this month, 15 Ford Fusions made in Mexico were found to contain drugs concealed in spare tire wells, when they arrived in northeast Ohio. The marijuana recovered from the cars was estimated to be worth $1 million. In a similar incident in March, in Minnesota, involving cars made in Mexico, police discovered seven Ford Fusions with marijuana stashed where the spare tire was supposed to be. 

''We are taking this very seriously,'' Ford spokeswoman Kelli Felker said in an email yesterday. ''We are working closely with a number of law enforcement agencies on this investigation, including the FBI, Customs, Department of Homeland Security and local police. We cannot comment further as this is an active investigation.''