Wife of Alleged Drug-Ring Leader Held Without Bond

Yolanda Caro, wife of a Tijuana man alleged to be the leader of a major Mexican drug-smuggling ring, was ordered held without bond Monday by a U.S. magistrate who called her a flight risk.

Caro, 25, is married to Francisco Javier Caro Payan, 29, who has been described by U.S. officials as a marijuana trafficker. According to a six-count indictment that was unsealed Monday, Caro and her husband smuggled about 14,000 pounds of marijuana into the United States between March 21 and April 12, 1987.

The couple was arrested in Montreal, Canada, on June 7 by Royal Canadian Mounted Police and charged with conspiracy to import and sell marijuana. Caro waived extradition and was brought to San Diego, but her husband remains in custody in Canada, where he is fighting extradition.

Caro’s defense attorney, Michael Pancer, tried unsuccessfully to convince U.S. Magistrate Roger C. McKee that she did not pose a flight risk if released on bond. Several family members and friends offered to post homes and a business as security to guarantee Caro’s bond.

“I’m not satisfied that she would be present for trial,” said McKee in rejecting Caro’s bid for bond. Prosecutors urged McKee to order Caro held without bond, arguing that she would probably flee to Mexico at the first opportunity.

According to Assistant U.S. Atty. Michael Lasater, federal agents have recorded several drug transactions that Caro had made with government informants.

Caro lived in National City and met her husband when she worked at a store in Plaza Bonita, testified Lydia Vanagas, Caro’s sister. When she was arrested by Canadian officials, Caro gave her name as Yolanda Medina Villa. Her husband was traveling under the name of Arturo Gonzalez Valenzuela, Lasater said.