Man arrested for drug smuggling

A 38-year-old Yuma man was arrested Tuesday at the Andrade port of entry after more than 13 pounds of cocaine allegedly were found inside his vehicle.

Jose L. Muniz-Arechiga was taken into custody at 8:30 p.m. Tuesday at the port of entry by Homeland Security Investigations agents and booked into county jail without bail on suspicion of unlawful importation of a controlled substance, county Sheriff’s Office arrest records stated.

According to a federal court complaint, Muniz-Arechiga and his vehicle, a 2010 Chevrolet Silverado, were sent to secondary inspection based on a computer-generated alert.

In secondary inspection, a human and narcotics detector dog alerted to the undercarriage of the vehicle directly beneath the center console.

Upon further inspection, Customs and Border Protection officers noticed there was fresh silicone on the vehicle’s undercarriage beneath the center console.

Officers moved the vehicle onto a hydraulic lift for further inspection and discovered a non-factory compartment beneath the center console of the vehicle. Officers removed a panel that covered the compartment and recovered five rectangle-shaped packages.

The packages field tested positive for cocaine and had a combined weight of 13.66 pounds.

In the court complaint, Muniz stated he met an individual approximately one month ago who offered him $5,000 to smuggle cocaine from Mexico into the United States.