Woman gets 16 months for trying to smuggle girl

Tucson, Arizona | Published: 07.19.2008 A 22-year-old Mexican woman was sentenced to 16 months in prison this week for trying to smuggle a a 2-year-old girl through a Nogales crossing for money. On March 6, Ana Lilian Valenzuela-Ramirez, of Nogales, Sonora, came through the pedestrian line at the port with the toddler, who appeared unusually sleepy, a release from the U.S. Attorney's Office said. Valenzuela presented border-crossing cards for herself and the child, who she said was a friend's daughter. Officers became suspicious, though, after the woman gave conflicting statements about her relationship with the mother and the child's destination in the United States, the release said. When officers instructed Mexican police to bring the girl's parents to the port, Valenzuela admitted the border-crossing card wasn't the... [read full story]