An Edinburg woman is behind bars after authorities allegedly found more than $100,000 dollars in her purse, under her clothes and in her luggage.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers arrested 40-year-old Nereida Moreno-Izaguirre on a federal bulk cash smuggling charge on Friday.
Federal court records show that Moreno-Izaguirre was a passenger aboard a Pan Americanos bus that was headed into Mexico at the Hidalgo-Reynosa International Bridge.
The bus was stopped for a southbound inspection where Moreno-Izaguirre was allegedly hesitant to open her purse.
Customs officers allegedly found a total of $100,186 dollars in her purse, under her clothes and in her luggage.
Court records show that Moreno-Izaguirre knew it was illegal to smuggle money into Mexico and that she was supposed to get paid $200 for every $10,000 dollars she smuggled.
Moreno-Izaguirre appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Dorina Ramos in McAllen on Monday morning.
Investigators reported that Moreno-Izaguirre is a Mexican national but a legal, permanent resident of the United States who lived in Edinburg.
Judge Ramos denied bond for Moreno-Izaguirre until a Monday morning hearing.