Customs Busts Drug Smuggler Posing as Pilot
Jeff Edwards April 05, 2017
CBP agents at JFK found a small fortune in illegal drugs hidden in a suitcase after questioning the credentials of an alleged smuggler posing as a Delta Air Lines pilot.
An alleged drug runner’s elaborate disguise backfired by making customs officials immediately suspicious. While investigating the passenger’s dubious Delta Air Lines pilot credentials, agents discovered he also had an estimated $85,000 worth of cocaine concealed in a hidden luggage compartment on Monday, March 27.
According to US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents at John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK), Jamaican national Mario Hudson arrived in the US from Norman Manley International Airport (KIN), wearing what appeared to be a Delta Air Lines captains uniform. After reportedly telling agents that he was a “dead-heading crew member” returning home from an overseas flight, investigators discovered two apparently forged airline identification badges on his person.
Upon closer inspection, agents became suspicious that the fake pilot’s “crew bags” had an unusually “thick and heavy” construction. While probing the bags, CBP agents discovered a white powder that turned out to be part of a large cache of cocaine.
“This seizure demonstrates the vigilance and dedication demonstrated daily by CBP officers at JFK, in keeping these prohibited and dangerous narcotics off the streets of our communities,” CBP Acting Director of New York Field Operations Leon Hayward announced in a statement.
All told, CBP agents report finding nearly 5 pounds of cocaine concealed in the impostor’s bags. Hudson was arrested on a variety of charges, including importation of a controlled substance.
[Photo: Shutterstock]
