Armando Antonio Mena of Phoenix, Arizona, was arrested Friday and and charged with possession of a controlled substance with the intent to distribute, U.S. Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert announced Monday.
According to court documents, Mena, age 28, was traveling to St. Croix from San Francisco via airline on May 27, with a checked bag that contained 22 individually wrapped vacuum sealed bags under articles of clothing. The vacuum wrapped bags contained a green leafy substance which tested positive for marijuana and which weighed approximately 10.78 kilograms.
An initial appearance in federal court occurred onFriday, followed by preliminary and release hearings on Monday.
The case is being investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and U.S. Customs and Border Patrol. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Melissa P. Ortiz.
