NEW YORK: Authorities have arrested three men accused of trying to smuggle 435 pounds of marijuana near beach access No. 5 on South Padre Island.
According to a federal criminal complaint, Samuel Reeves, Jose Armando Herrera and Eliseo Maldonado, ages and addresses unknown, stated they were on the beach on Tuesday to smuggle marijuana.
The trio appeared Wednesday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Ronald A. Morgan on drug smuggling charges. Bond was denied and they were remanded to the custody of U.S. marshals. A detention hearing is set for next week.
The complaint stated South Padre Island police officers spotted the men inside a truck near beach access No. 5. Upon interviewing the men, the officers learned that “Reeves, Herrera and Maldonado were on the beach to smuggle marijuana,” the complaint alleges.
SPI police went to the location where the marijuana was said to be stashed and found five bundles of the drug. Agents with Homeland Security Investigations were sent to the scene and the men were arrested. Reeves, Herrera and Maldonado admitted they planned to smuggle the marijuana for monetary gains, the federal complaint stated.
