More than $5m worth of methamphetamines were seized in California after they were disguised as hundreds of watermelons, the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency said.

The drugs were seized after a 29-year-old man was found with the shipment in his tractor-trailer at the Otay Mesa Commercial Facility in San Diego on Friday.

The man told CBP officers that he was bringing cases of watermelons across the border from Mexico.

However, the officers decided to send the driver, the vehicle and its cargo for further examination at a secondary inspection area.

The shipment was found to contain 1,220 packages “wrapped in paper, disguised as watermelons”, the agency said.

The contents of the packages were tested and identified as methamphetamines, with a total weight of 4,587lbs (2,080kg).

The agency said they had an estimated street value which exceeds $5m (£3.8m).

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Methamphetamine, often referred to as crystal meth, is a highly addictive drug which is much more common in the US than the UK.

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CPB officers seized the narcotics and the tractor-trailer before turning the driver over to the Homeland Security Investigations agency.

“I am incredibly proud of our team for their exceptional work over the past few weeks in uncovering sophisticated and diverse smuggling methods,” said Rosa E Hernandez, port director for the area port of Otay Mesa.

“As drug cartels continue to evolve their smuggling techniques, we will continue finding new and better ways to prevent these dangerous drugs and other contraband from entering the country.”

CPB officers had intercepted 629lb (285kg) of the same drug concealed with a shipment of celery just a week before, according to a separate release by the agency.

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