A city councilwoman from a border city in Mexico pleaded guilty to smuggling close to 100 pounds of cocaine in a U.S. federal court. The politician, still listed on her city’s website, is currently facing a possible sentence of up to life in prison.
The guilty plea took place late last week at a federal courthouse in McAllen, Texas, where 34-year-old Denisse Ahumada Martinez, a councilwoman for the city of Reynosa, Tamaulipas, went before U.S. District Judge Ricardo Hinojosa and pleaded guilty to the charge of possession with intent to distribute 42 kilograms of cocaine (92.5 pounds).
As Breitbart Texas first reported, the case against Ahumada began in June when she attempted to drive the cocaine load through the Falfurrias Border Patrol checkpoint, approximately 80 miles north of the Texas-Mexico border. At that checkpoint, federal authorities stopped her and found the drugs after using an X-ray scanning device.
Court information revealed that on June 9, Ahumada drove to Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, where her vehicle was loaded with the cocaine packages. On June 10, she drove north towards Reynosa and then into Texas. Ahumada was planning to drive to San Antonio, where she would deliver the cocaine load.
At the time of her arrest, the woman told authorities that she had been threatened into acting as a drug mule. Her arrest sparked much controversy in Mexico, where political rivals claimed that she had been living beyond her means for a long time.
Breitbart Texas reported the case also sparked a media firestorm in Mexico because, during a subsequent hearing, a U.S. magistrate judge dismissed the initial charge against Ahumada over some inconsistencies that surfaced when her defense attorney questioned agents on the stand.
After the dismissal, the Brooks County Sheriff’s Office filed charges at the state level. Weeks later, the U.S. Attorney’s office obtained a criminal indictment against the politician with the new charge. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, her sentencing is set for January 31, where she faces a possible maximum sentence of life in prison.
Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist with Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and senior Breitbart management. You can follow him on Twitter and on Facebook. He can be contacted at Iortiz@breitbart.com.
Brandon Darby is the managing director and editor-in-chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and senior Breitbart management. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. He can be contacted at bdarby@breitbart.com.