Tijuanan Charged With Smuggling Pot
A 47-year-old Tijuana man was indicted by a federal grand jury in San Diego on charges that he tried to sneak 1,226 pounds of marijuana into the United States at the Otay Mesa border crossing, U.S. Atty. William Braniff said Friday.
Victor Manuel Mendez-Lopez was arrested Oct. 7 after a narcotics-trained dog alerted U.S. Customs Service agents to the possibility of drugs in the apparently empty truck he was driving. Agents found a concealed compartment containing 175 packages of marijuana, Braniff said.
Mendez-Lopez faces two counts--importation of a controlled substance and possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute--and could be sentenced to a maximum of five years in prison and a $2-million fine, authorities said.
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