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.
A federal grand jury returned an indictment last week charging Migdelia Irma Mendoza, 42, of Phoenix, 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. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States.
HSTF Arizona-Tucson 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.
An indictment is a formal accusation of criminal conduct. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
CASE NUMBER: 26-CR-489
RELEASE NUMBER: 2026-080_Mendoza
# # #
For more information on the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/az/
Follow the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, on Twitter @USAO_AZ for the latest news.
Source: U.S. Attorney’s Office — Arizona — U.S. Department of Justice press release.