Photo Courtesy of CBP
Earlier this month, U. S. Customs and Border Protection officers and a dog stationed at John F. Kennedy International Airport prevented a roughly 24-pound load of cocaine from entering the country.
On Dec. 10, following the arrival a flight from Guayaquil, Ecuador, CBP officers and a dog inspected all checked luggage taken off the aircraft. The CBP dog alerted its handler to a particular, abandoned duffel bag, which officers X-rayed and noticed an anomaly. Officials probed all 10 bricks in the bag, revealing a white powder that tested positive for cocaine.
CBP seized the bricks of cocaine and turned it over to Homeland Security Investigations for further investigation. The weight of the cocaine seized was approximately 24 pounds, with an estimated street value of $400,000.
This translates to approximately 70,000 doses; a lethal dose of cocaine is roughly one to three grams, so the amount seized would be roughly 5,500 lethal doses.
