U.S. Customs and Border Protection arrested two people Saturday after officers found nearly 200 pounds of cocaine hidden in their vehicle.
Luis Hernandez Reyes, born in 1989, and Merle Ramirez Gonzalez, born in 1981, both of Mexico, are charged with conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute a little more than 188 pounds of cocaine.
CBP encountered the pair at approximately 10:20 a.m. inside a Ford Expedition, and Hernandez told the officer they were crossing to go shopping, according to a criminal complaint which says they were sent for a secondary inspection after a computer-generated referral.
An X-ray of the vehicle revealed an anomaly in the floorboard, which alerted a drug-sniffing dog, according to CBP.
That’s where CBP officers say they found 77 packages of cocaine.
During an interview with federal agents, Hernandez said the vehicle was under his name but that it did not belong to him, according to the complaint.
“Hernandez-Reyes stated he was recruited to cross narcotics from Mexico into the United States,” the complaint stated.
In the lead-up to Saturday’s unsuccessful smuggling attempt, Hernandez said he was told to cross the vehicle into the United States numerous times with Ramirez so that they would have a crossing history, according to CBP.
“Hernandez-Reyes stated he was told he would not have narcotics on the trip on February 12, 2022, but that he would be crossing narcotics in the near future,” the complaint stated.
He believed that he would be paid $4,000 when he started crossing cocaine, according to the complaint.
Hernandez was suppose to tell law enforcement that Ramirez was his spouse.
Both suspects were scheduled to make a first appearance Friday morning in front of U.S. Magistrate Judge Nadia S. Medrano.
