By Roger Lanse

According to a press release, U.S. Border Patrol agents and associated agricultural specialists, seized 22 rolls of Mexican bologna weighing 194 pounds on Sunday, Feb. 7, 2021 at the Columbus, New Mexico port-of-entry. Bologna is a prohibited product as it is made from pork and could introduce foreign diseases detrimental to the U.S. pork industry, the release said.

The offending bologna was seized at 8 a.m. when officers noticed multiple red rolls of the meat in the hatchback area of a 2019 Nissan Rogue, entering from Mexico, and driven by a 49-year-old male legal resident of Albuquerque. The release stated additional rolls were found hidden in his luggage.

The man was fined $500 and the bologna was destroyed.

Columbus Port Director Tony Hall reminded travelers to declare all items being brought into the U.S. to avoid fines and penalties and that "A properly declared prohibited item can be abandoned at the port without consequence."