Mexico's Best and Brightest? LAPD Busts Drug Lords Smuggling METH In Burritos

Drug dealers have long turned to creative means of smuggling illegal substances — from hiding them in a newborn baby's diaper to using orange tape to disguise more than a ton of marijuana as a shipment of carrots.



So Los Angeles police officers weren't surprised Saturday when they discovered 14 foil-wrapped packages disguised to look like burritos that actually contained 17 pounds of methamphetamine.



"Narcotics dealers go to great lengths to conceal whatever narcotics it is they're trying to move from one location to another," said Los Angeles Police Department spokeswoman Meghan Aguilar. "Soda cans, books cut out in the middle. Only the imagination limits how far drug dealers will go."



Officers uncovered the meth "burritos" about 6:30 p.m. Saturday during a traffic stop in Angelino Heights, Aguilar said. Ricardo Renteria, 46, was pulled over for multiple traffic violations, including erratic driving. Officers searched the car after Renteria failed to provide a valid driver's license, Aguilar said.



In addition to the drugs, officers discovered a loaded handgun and a large amount of money, Aguilar said. It was not immediately clear how much money was found.



Renteria was charged with possession of narcotics and was being held in lieu of more than $1 million in bond, Aguilar said.