62-year-old Granny Smuggles 214 Pounds Of Pot In Trunk Of Her Pinto To Support Bingo Habit

[matcom]

<snip>

SIERRA VISTA, Ariz. (AP) -- A 62-year-old grandmother who prosecutors said ran drugs to support her bingo habit has been sentenced to three years in prison and a $150,000 fine.

Acting on a tip, state police stopped Leticia Villareal Garcia near Bisbee in southeast Arizona in February 2005 and found 214 pounds of marijuana stuffed into the trunk of her car.

Garcia has maintained her innocence, telling the judge at her sentencing Friday that she was unaware of the grass as she headed for a bingo game.

"I never, never had any knowledge of that car being loaded when I went to Tucson," the Bisbee resident told Cochise County Superior Court Judge Wallace Hoggatt.

Garcia testified at her trial in November that her son's godfather had borrowed her car the day before. Her lawyer, Robert Zohlmann, said she had been used as a "blind mule" to unknowingly haul drugs.

Garcia said she often played bingo, occasionally winning several thousand dollars at a sitting, although her only regular income was a $275 monthly welfare check she received for caring for a granddaughter.

http://www.11alive.com/news/watercooler/article_weird.aspx?storyid=91209

[JVS]

1. shit, she could have used that stuff to start a whole new habit

[AllegroRondo]

2. Impossible!

theres no way a Pinto could still run with 200+ pounds in the trunk!

[underpants]

3. YES!!!

Now that is what I am talking about

[jmowreader]

4. How do you not notice when the front wheels are 3" off the ground?

Pintos weren't noted for their extreme load capacities.

[Yavin4]

5. I Want To Party With Grandma

Party on grandma!

[Nickster]

6. OMG, This is what my MIL is headed for! LoL n/t

[leftyladyfrommo]

7. Yes. It was me! I admit it.

That nasty Bingo habit of mine is going to be the death of me.

Really, if it was me I would just smoke the dope and forget the Bingo.

[rug]

8. This is bullshit.

"The underlying issue is that she's got a bingo problem, which explains why an otherwise nice person might get sucked into something like this," prosecutor Doyle Johnstun told the jury.

I'd like to know what other evidence they had than this.

[eppur_se_muova]

9. OMG!! Incredible!! Unbelievable!! Astounding!!

Who the hell drives a **PINTO** anymore ??

[Courtesy Flush]

13. The actual story didn't mention a Pinto

The OP was just being colorful :applause:

[zanne]

10. Now that's the kind of old lady I want to be. nt

[carly denise pt deux]

11. Man, that grandma was doing it ALL wrong

A PINTO? Smuggling that much mary jane, one would think she would have made enough dough
to splurge on an expensive old ladies car, like a caddy or lincoln.

[Courtesy Flush]

12. If not for that tip...

Notice the police were acting on a tip. Otherwise, Granny would still be hauling the stuff. She doesn't fit the profile, so she doesn't get noticed.

I never understood these drug runners who all but put a neon sign on the car, advertising what they're doing. There have got to be some smart ones we never hear about.

If I ever ran drugs, I'd have a mini-van or SUV with a bumper sticker that said "My kid's an honor student at Whitebread Elementary". I'd wear a golf shirt, and drive the speed limit. How hard is that?

Wait a second! I may be making a career change soon! :)