Cops: Octogenarian, Wife Were Hauling a Lot of Cocaine

An octogenarian is at the center of a border drug bust that agents say involved more than 345 pounds of cocaine. Federal prosecutors allege 80-year-old Luke David Brader and his 74-year-old wife, Susan, were hauling a white box trailer when they pulled up to a Border Patrol checkpoint near Falfurrias, Texas, on July 1. A K-9's alert during an immigration inspection led agents to send the truck to secondary screening, where an X-ray scan allegedly revealed a hidden compartment in the trailer's front wall packed with 134 bundles of cocaine, report USA Today and ValleyCentral.

The couple, who authorities say later acknowledged knowing the trailer contained illegal drugs, allegedly told investigators they expected to earn between $5,000 and $10,000 for driving it to Houston. They appeared in federal court on Monday on a charge of possessing more than 5 kilograms of cocaine with intent to distribute. After waiving a preliminary hearing, they were ordered held pending a detention hearing, per USA Today. Both have court-appointed lawyers, who did not immediately respond to requests for comment.