Migdelia Irma Mendoza, Attempted Smuggling Goods from the United States, Arizona 2026

PHOENIX, Ariz. – A woman has been charged in federal court after she attempted to cross the southern border in a vehicle loaded with firearms, firearm parts, and an RPG launcher tube.

Migdelia Irma Mendoza, 42, of Phoenix, was charged with Attempted Smuggling Goods from the United States.

The charge resulted from a Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) investigation.

According to the court documents, on April 19, 2026, Mendoza was traveling to Mexico and passed multiple signs warning drivers that firearms and ammunition are prohibited in the Republic of Mexico. When Mendoza attempted to cross the border at the DeConcini Port of Entry in Nogales, officers conducted an outbound inspection.

As officers searched Mendoza’s Lexus, they folded up the rear seat and found non-factory black fabric beneath it. Under the fabric, officers felt objects that were solid and did not appear to be part of the vehicle. After anomalies were confirmed through a scan of the vehicle, officers conducted a closer inspection and discovered the RPG launcher tube, firearms, and firearm parts.

Specific items included four AR-style rifles, 16 AK-style rifles, one AK-style pistol, one RPG-7 launcher tube, 20 firearm pistol grips, 16 rifle buttstocks, and 24 AK-style firearm magazines. These items are prohibited by U.S. law for export without a valid U.S. government issued export license, which Mendoza did not possess.

This prosecution is part of the HSTF initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion.

The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad.

The HSTF comprises agents and officers from Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), U.S. Border Patrol, the FBI, Drug Enforcement Administration, U.S. Marshals Service, IRS-Criminal Investigation, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, U.S. Secret Service, and various local and state law enforcement agencies, with the prosecution being led by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona, Phoenix.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-az/pr/arizona-woman-indicted-after-attempting-smuggle-firearms-rpg-launcher-tube-mexico