20-pound bag of marijuana intercepted at PHL
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers intercepted a 20-pound load of marijuana in a passenger's luggage on Saturday.
The French passenger was traveling from Philadelphia International Airport to London when a customs and border control detector dog named, Gini, alerted officers about the London-bound bag.
After receiving notice on the woman's baggage tag information, CBP officers found her in the gate area and brought her to the CBP inspection station where they looked through her suitcase. Upon examination, officers discovered 20 vacuum-sealed bags packed with marijuana.
The marijuana load in total had a street value of $20,000 in the U.S. CBP took the marijuana, and let her continue traveling to London. She was not criminally charged.
"Travelers who gamble by attempting to smuggle bulk marijuana through our ports of entry will find that Customs and Border Protection officers are hard to bet against. Smugglers should be aware that they may face severe consequences. Marijuana smuggling remains illegal and CBP will continue to seize it when we encounter it," Rene Ortega, the CBP's Acting Area Port Director for the Area Port of Philadelphia, said.
