Two Reynosa women are behind bars in the Rio Grande Valley after authorities allegedly found more than 16 pounds of cocaine hidden in their girdles.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers arrested Mireya Ortiz-Moreno and her niece Esmeralda Perez-Ortiz on Sunday morning.
Court records show that the two women drove up from Mexico with their children at the Hidalgo-Reynosa International Bridge on Sunday morning.
Customs officers noticed that Ortiz-Moreno's clothing was not appropriate for the cool weather and saw a bulge shaped like a brick under clothes.
The women were sent to secondary inspection where authorities reported finding four packages with 9.5 pounds of cocaine sewn into her girdle.
Customs officers found another three packages with seven pounds of cocaine strapped to her stomach.
Ortiz-Moreno said it was her first time smuggling drugs and she only did it after receiving a phone call from an unknown man who said "there would be consequences" if she didn't do it.
Records show that both Ortiz-Moreno and Perez-Ortiz were supposed to get paid $400 dollars per package.
The two women appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Dorina Ramos in McAllen on Monday morning.
Both women are Mexican nationals who live in Reynosa.
Judge Ramos denied bond for both of them until a Thursday morning hearing.
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