The News Minute | August 9, 2014 | 06:30 pm IST
Over one pound of cocaine was seized from a Honduran woman at the Washington Dulles International Airport by United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers on August 6.
The cocaine was hidden inside caramelised sugarcane sweets that the woman, who claimed to be a courier on business, was carrying. The officers cut open one of the sweets after the woman was referred for a routine secondary examination that included inspection of her packages. The white, powdery substance found inside the sweets tested positive for cocaine.
The amount of cocaine seized from her could have a street value of more than $80,000.
The woman, who was confirmed to be a courier, was sent back to Honduras and has been barred from entering the United States for five years.
A report published on the US CBP's website quotes Wayne Biondi, CBP port director for the Port of Washington, as saying, "Customs and Border Protection officers at Washington Dulles International Airport have proven to be exceptionally skilled at discovering unique concealment methods, and this seizure is illustrative of that skill." He further added, "CBP officers remain ever vigilant at intercepting illicit narcotics before it can hurt our families and communities."
Read the full report here: Dulles CBP Finds Over 1.5 Lbs of Cocaine in Caramelized Sugar Cane Sweets