SALINA -- Three people from Texas are facing drug charges after being arrested in Salina driving a Mexican drug cartel member's car.
Federal prosecutors say Ruby Maxwell, 30, Mary Ann Selgado, 41, and Matthew Octavious, 33, were arrested Wednesday evening on the Thruway near Exit 37. Agents from the DEA spotted the car, which belongs to a mid-level member of the violent Mexican drug cartel known as Los Zetas.
After the car was stopped, a dog alerted police to cocaine in the car. Officers found 10 kilograms hidden in secret compartments.
All three suspects are charged with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine. The charge carries a sentence of ten years to life in prison, and a fine of $10 million dollars. The suspects are being held pending a detention hearing Friday.
Mexico is in the middle of a deadly drug war. The Los Zetas cartel was recently linked to an arson at a casino that killed 52 people.
