USBP: smuggler claimed to be informant

The U.S. Border Patrol has arrested a man accused of smuggling more than 710 pounds of marijuana, court records show. Once in custody the man claimed to be a government informant.

Raymundo Carlos Ramirez Carretero was arrested Thursday morning and later charged with possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance, according to a criminal complaint.

On Monday, Ramirez went before U.S. Magistrate Judge Ronal Morgan for a detention hearing, where the judge determined that Ramirez posed a flight risk and ordered he be held without bond pending trial. He was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.

The arrest took place when a Border Patrol agent on foot saw several subjects loading bundles into a green Jeep Cherokee at an area near the Flor de Mayo sandpit in the Southmost area, records show.

The agent called for other agents in vehicles who spotted the Cherokee five minutes later farther down the road, USBP said. The vehicle was then stopped.

The agents detained Ramirez and seized ten bundles containing more than 710 pounds of marijuana, record show.

Once in custody, Ramirez told the agents that he was an informant for Immigrations and Customs Enforcement, however both ICE and Customs and Border Protection told USBP that Ramirez wasn’t working for them, the complaint stated.