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A Brownsville man is behind bars after he allegedly tried to smuggle more than $687,000 dollars worth of heroin in his pickup truck’s battery.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers arrested Felipe De Jesus Gutierrez on federal drug charges Saturday.

The 31-year-old Brownsville man drove up from Mexico at Brownsville’s B&M International Bridge in a black Dodge Ram pickup truck.

Customs officers allegedly found six packages with 8.5 pounds of heroin inside his car battery.

Authorities estimate the heroin is worth $687,835 dollars on the streets.

Gutierrez appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Ronald Morgan in Brownsville on Monday morning.

Investigators reported that Gutierrez is an American citizen who lives in Brownsville.

Judge Morgan denied bond for Gutierrez until a Thursday afternoon hearing.

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