An American citizen was arrested on Wednesday after attempting to smuggle $130,000 worth of fentanyl pills through a California immigration checkpoint, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection on Thursday.

Border Patrol agents at the El Centro Sector checkpoint in Indio said a ride-share taxi driver with four passengers entered the inspection area – which is on Highway 86 near the Salton Sea – at around 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday.

The vehicle was sent to the secondary inspection area for further investigation, where a K-9 team specializing in concealed humans and narcotics detection received permission from the taxi driver to search the vehicle.

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The K-9 alerted authorities to the vehicle's trunk, which contained several bags, and then specifically alerted to a backpack and a speaker. A passenger, who was not named and only identified as a U.S. citizen, said both belonged to him.

When searching both items, Border Patrol agents found "several wrapped packages consistent with wrapping commonly used to transport illegal narcotics," the agency said.

A sample taken from one of the wrapped packages tested positive for fentanyl.

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The packages were determined to have 9.7 pounds of fentanyl pills, which have an estimated street value of $130,000, CBP said.

The passenger was arrested and turned over to the Drug Enforcement Administration.

The El Centro Sector said the seizure is part of Operation Apollo, a joint regional operation with federal, state and local agencies aimed at fighting the threat of fentanyl and other illicit synthetic narcotics.

In the past few days, the checkpoint said agents have apprehended the following: a fugitive wanted for federal probation violation stemming from cocaine smuggling, a criminal with a no-bail felony warrant out of San Bernardino, 9.3 pounds of marijuana, 6.5 pounds of meth and $31,794.

An adventurous and missing cat taking shelter in a car at a North Carolina junkyard was rescued from the vehicle just moments before it was crushed.

According to a Facebook post from Brother Wolf Animal Rescue, an employee at the junkyard was removing the car’s battery "just moments" before it was sent to be crushed.

The rescue said that Lily the cat took a "blind leap of faith" into the junkyard worker's arms. 

"As he popped open the hood, a bundle of fur jumped out and took a blind leap of faith into his arms," Brother Wolf Animal Rescue said. "She looked at him with soft eyes, thanking him with slow blinks and soft purrs. It was almost like she knew that her life had been saved."

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The employee kept the cat bundled up inside his jacket for the rest of his shift.

"With no shelters nearby and no idea how to help his new feline friend, he reached out to Brother Wolf, where his girlfriend works, to try and find the cat's family," the rescue said.

The shelter said that shortly after Lily was saved, the rescuer received a call that a man was "frantically searching" for his lost cast.

Lily's father said that despite the cat's tiny size, she had an "adventurous spirit."

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"We reached out to Lily’s caretaker, who was so thrilled to hear that his closest companion was safe and sound. We learned from him that, despite her small size, Lily had an adventurous spirit like no other," the shelter said.

"In fact, her favorite activity is going for a ride with her dad, whether that be in his car or his motorcycle - she even has her own helmet!," they said.

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The shelter offered to return Lily to her owner, vaccinated, microchipped, and spayed at no cost. He gladly accepted the offer.

"Thank you for supporting the animals who need us, no matter the wild rides they take to find their way to Brother Wolf," the shelter said. "Together, we save lives!"

Lily and her owner were reunited and very happy to see each other.

"She melted into his arms as his eyes filled with tears of joy," the shelter.

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