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Today in Found at the Border: U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers inspecting the vehicle of a Phoenix man on his way back into the United States found a Thai woman in the man’s suitcase.
According to a CBP spokeswoman, the 56-year-old Phoenix resident — whose name wasn’t released — was driving back into the country through the port of entry in Nogales on December 30.
Officers selected the man and his Honda SUV for further inspection.
In the lone suitcase in the back, officers found a 48-year-old Thai national zipped up inside.
The woman, identified in federal court filings as Pornkamol Mongkolsermsak, had been “denied admission, excluded, deported, and removed from the United States” through Los Angeles just 10 days earlier, according to the documents.
A CBP spokewoman says the man’s SUV was seized.
See the before-and-after photos of the suitcase below:
In other border briefs provided by the agency, a 24-year-old Phoenix woman on her way into Mexico on New Year’s Day was busted with 6,000 rounds of ammunition, and in separate incidents, a Mexican woman attempted to bring 15 pounds of meth into the United States, and an Avondale man tried to bring in 50 pounds of meth.
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Follow Matthew Hendley on Twitter at @MatthewHendley.
