Las Cruces Sun-News

LAS CRUCES - Two men allegedly driving vehicles containing cocaine in concealed compartments are now facing drug trafficking charges.

Francisco Alberto Guerrero-Rodriguez, 20, and Noe Lucero-Ceniceros, 28, both Mexican nationals and in the United States illegally, according to a news release from the Department of Justice, were charged Monday in U.S. Magistrate Court in Las Cruces.

The drugs were found in separate incidents at U.S. Border Patrol checkpoints in southern New Mexico, according to a news release from the Department of Justice.

In both cases, about 19 pounds of cocaine were found in compartments accessible through trap doors in the rear of the vehicle.

Border Patrol agents arrested Guerrero-Rodriguez on July 20, after cocaine was found during an inspection at the checkpoint on Highway 54 south of Alamogordo. According to the criminal complaint, the 19.4 pounds of cocaine were in seven bundles concealed in an “after-market compartment above the gas tank” that was accessed through a trap door under the vehicle’s back seat.

Border Patrol agents arrested Lucero-Ceniceros on July 21, after cocaine was found during an inspection at the checkpoint on Interstate 25 near Hatch. According to the complaint, the 19.1 pounds of cocaine were found in a trap door accessible after removing the vehicle’s rear passenger compartment.

Guerrero-Rodriguez and Lucero-Ceniceros both were taken into custody pending their trials, which have yet to be scheduled. Each face a statutory minimum of 10 years and a maximum of life in federal prison, if convicted on the charges.