Woman arrested on smuggling charges

December 24, 2008 - 2:42 PM

Customs and Border Protection officers arrested a 43-year-old Mexican female as she allegedly attempted to drive across Gateway International Bridge with 106 pounds of marijuana on Tuesday afternoon.

The suspected smuggler, a resident of Ciudad Victoria, Tamaulipas, approached an inspection booth driving a late model Nissan Frontier, said an agency press release.

The officer at the booth sent the driver to a secondary inspection where officers looked into discrepancies on the bed of the pickup. The search turned up 40 packages containing almost 106 pounds of marijuana hidden within the bed of the vehicle and valued at over $106,000, the agency said.

The driver was arrested and turned over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement pending further investigation and undetermined charges.