Mexico frees car auction victim

Mexican authorities have released a US man who was found with marijuana in his car - because he said the drugs were already in the car when he bought it.

Adrian Rodriguez, 25, from California, was arrested in July and held in the Mexican town of Tijuana.

Garage mechanics had found more than 13.6kg (30 pounds) of marijuana hidden in his car.

But it turned out that Mr Rodriguez had bought the vehicle from the US customs service.

Mr Rodriguez was released from custody on Friday when a judge ruled there was not enough evidence to charge him.

The American man, a social worker at a centre for abused children, said he and his wife bought the Passat for $600 at an auction of government-seized vehicles.

Following his arrest, the US Customs and Border Protection said it would improve its inspections of seized vehicles.

Under the new rules, sniffer dogs will search every vehicle when seized and again when put up for sale.