Texas trucker involved in high-speed chase pleads guilty to drug charge

Christopher Sedrick Brown led authorities near Laredo on a 90-mph chase in his tractor-trailer

Christopher Sedrick Brown fled a U.S. Border Patrol checkpoint near Laredo, Texas, and led authorities on a high-speed chase on April 20. (Photo: CBP)

A truck driver who led authorities on a wild chase in South Texas has pleaded guilty to a drug charge.

On April 20, Christopher Sedrick Brown, 46, of Houston, arrived in a tractor-trailer at the U.S. Border Patrol checkpoint on Interstate 35 north of Laredo, Texas.

A Border Patrol K-9 alerted agents to the presence of narcotics or hidden people in the vehicle. When authorities told Brown they wanted to inspect the truck, he accelerated and left the checkpoint at a high rate of speed, according to a release.

Agents pursued Brown as he drove erratically at speeds reaching 94 mph. Brown made his way into La Salle County, Texas, near mile marker 59, but eventually lost control of the truck and crashed into brush.

Brown attempted to flee on foot, but agents apprehended him on the Interstate Highway 35 frontage road.

Agents eventually discovered eight bundles of marijuana wrapped in cellophane in Brown’s truck. The drugs weighed 132 kilograms (291.6 pounds), with an estimated street value of $90,000.

Agents seized nearly 300 pounds of drugs from Christopher Sedrick Brown’s truck. (Photo: CBP)

Brown has entered a guilty plea to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute. He remains in custody in Laredo pending sentencing. He faces five to 40 years in federal prison.

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Noi Mahoney

Noi Mahoney is a Texas-based journalist who covers cross-border trade, logistics and supply chains for FreightWaves. He graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a degree in English in 1998. Mahoney has more than 20 years experience as a journalist, working for newspapers in Maryland and Texas. Contact nmahoney@freightwaves.com