TIJUANA – In the largest seizure this year in Baja California, Mexico's army confiscated Monday morning 788 pounds of cocaine, worth an estimated $11 million.

The value could be three times higher since the cocaine was pure and would be diluted before being sold, said Gen. Gilberto Landeros, the commander of Baja California's Second Military Zone, during an evening press conference at the Morelos barracks while standing next to 356 packages of the drug.

The military has seized a total of 3,181 pounds of cocaine so far this year in Baja California.

He said it was unknown which criminal group had prepared the cocaine, but predicted that the seizure could unleash more violence as the traffickers sought to punish those who had "lost" the huge load.

"The way to fight crime is not to deny it; we can't let our guard down. Violence must be fought head on and in coordination with the other authorities," the general said.

He explained that the operation began with an anonymous phone caller warning that a person was loading packages of cocaine onto a pickup in a house in the Otay Vista neighborhood, northeast of the city.

The military arrived around 8 a.m., and the soldiers broke into the house, only to discover that the person who had been there had fled moments earlier.

However, they found the 356 packages of cocaine. They also seized $22,530 in cash, 920 pesos and a Honda pickup.

Last month, Baja California police announced a record seizure for that agency: 511 pounds of cocaine, believed to belong to the Sinaloa cartel.

In all this year, Baja California authorities have confiscated 1,079 pounds of cocaine across state, more than double the amount seized all of last year.

Omar.millan@sandiegored.com