A man driving his SUV across the border from Mexico at Nogales, Arizona over the holidays was charged with human smuggling when a search of his vehicle revealed that he was trying to smuggle in a Thai woman hiding in an oversized suitcase. Federal agents at the U.S. and Mexico border crossing location did not reveal the identity of the 58-year old resident of Phoenix, but said that the woman attempting to hide under a large pile of clothing in the suitcase was 48-year old Pornkamol Mongkolsermsak, a resident of Thailand.

Agents said that the woman had already been deported once before from the United States and was being charged with the crime of attempting unlawful re-entry following a deportation. It was not known if she is being held by the U.S. Immigration Office or if she has received any legal counsel regarding the smuggling incident. It was also not known whether or not Mongkolsermsak knew the man who was driving the Honda SUV across the border or if she had paid him any money in order to stow away in the suitcase to avoid detection by border officials. Officials did not say what prompted them to search the vehicle.

On The Web:

Woman Found in Suitcase at Arizona Border Crossing
http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/woman-found-suitcase-arizona-border-crossing-21454676