EL PASO, Texas (Border Report) – A rancher and his wife are now facing federal drug charges following an incident where they allegedly attempted to cross back into the United States from Mexico with 23.3 pounds of cocaine concealed in their pickup truck.
On Sunday, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers at the Santa Teresa Port of Entry in New Mexico detected irregularities in a vehicle as it passed through a low energy X-ray scanner at the border checkpoint.
As the red Dodge Ram approached the inspection booth, CBP officers stopped the vehicle to question the male driver and his female passenger. According to court documents, the individuals identified as Federico Rocha Lucero and Veronica Solano claimed they were returning to their home in Albuquerque, New Mexico, after visiting family and spending time at Rocha’s ranch in Durango, Mexico.
Subsequently, border officers directed the couple and their vehicle to a secondary inspection area. There, a drug-sniffing dog indicated the presence of potential contraband in the rear seats of the truck.
The officers found 12 plastic wrapped bundles containing a white powdery substance that tested positive for cocaine. The bundles held 23.3 pounds of cocaine.
In an interview with Homeland Security Investigations agents, Rocha said he and his wife spent several days in the mountains of Durango tending to their livestock with no telephone access. Rocha said his brother told him the red Dodge Ram was missing and presumed stolen.
Rocha said the Ram was “returned” with no visible damage after being missing for four days and that he and his wife returned to the U.S. in it afterwards.
Interviewed separately, Solano allegedly said she “had nothing to do with what’s going on” and that her husband “made her drive” during this return trip to the U.S. and a previous trip they took. CBP said the couple last crossed from Mexico to the United States last Aug. 19.
Court records allege the wife volunteered to agents that her husband “has been doing drugs,” has a criminal record and a pending court date in Albuquerque.
A search of the couple’s cellphones allegedly revealed they had made multiple calls during the time they claimed not having cellphone service. A WhatsApp message thread also revealed Solano had arranged with an unknown individual to pick up the Ram for the return trip.
Solano declined to answer additional questions and called for an attorney.
Rocha and Solano made an initial appearance on Wednesday in U.S. federal district court in Las Cruces, New Mexico, on charges of importation and possession with intent to distribute cocaine. They have a preliminary detention hearing on Nov. 10.
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