JetBlue Flight Attendant Accused Of Abandoning Cocaine-Filled Luggage At LAX Arrested In New York

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — A JetBlue flight attendant accused of attempting to bring nearly 70 pounds of cocaine through a security checkpoint at LAX has been arrested in New York, authorities said.

Marsha Gay Reynolds was taken into custody Wednesday afternoon after authorities say she surrendered to the Drug Enforcement Administration at John F. Kennedy International Airport.

The 31-year-old, according to an affidavit in support of the criminal complaint, was selected Friday at random to participate in a secondary TSA security screening. Crew members are not typically searched.

The complaint alleges that after being escorted to the secondary screening area, Reynolds dropped her carry-on luggage, kicked off her Gucci heels, and began to run down an upward traveling escalator.

Authorities then obtained custody of the two carry-on luggage bags, which were abandoned.

"The abandoned luggage was subsequently found to contain eleven individually wrapped packages that each contained a mixture or substance containing a detectable amount of cocaine that, in total, weighed approximately 68.49 pounds," the complaint states.

Reynolds has since been charged with possession with intent to distribute cocaine.

U.S. Attorney's spokesman Thom Mrozek, according to the Associated Press, said prosecutors believe reports that Reynolds was a runner-up in Miss Jamaica World 2008.

New York University lists a Marsha-Gay Reynolds as having been on the school's 2004 women's track and field team, though the wire service reports that it wasn't immediately clear if that was the same Reynolds arrested Wednesday.

Reynolds is expected to make her first court appearance Thursday. If convicted of drug trafficking, she could face 10 years behind bars.