Last week U.S. Customs and Border Patrol confiscated over 10 pounds of marijuana in a checked bag on its way to Nigeria. Also, officers seized over $220,000 from travelers leaving Washington Dulles Airport to Africa within the last 30 days which is a violation of currency reporting laws in the United States.
What happened
The marijuana was discovered inside a traveler’s suitcase kept in 10 vacuum-sealed packages within the clothing that was inside. CBP found the bag during an examination of checked baggage headed to Lagos, Nigeria.
Officers were not able to find the traveler who the suitcase belonged to at the airport. CBP continues to investigate.
In the United States, marijuana would’ve been worth the street value of about $8,000, and close to $30,000 in Nigerian currency.
A statement from the officials:
“Every day, Customs and Border Protection officers at Dulles Airport examine outbound baggage and air cargo to ensure compliance with applicable U.S. laws. Sometimes we discover illicit products, but intercepting a marijuana load crossing the Atlantic Ocean to Nigeria is quite unusual with the abundance of marijuana available around the globe,” said Kim Der-Yeghiayan, Acting Area Port Director for CBP’s Area Port of Washington, D.C.
CBP officers also seized $101,825 from an American couple headed to Lagos. They declared only $19,600 with the U.S. Treasury Department, however, a routine examination of their baggage revealed there were envelopes with money in their suitcases that totaled $101,825.
Cash found too-
Then on the same day officers seized another $13,000 from a traveler headed to Ethiopia. They also reported he only had $2,700 then officers discovered the rest in his baggage as well.
“The most important lesson for international travelers to understand is that they can travel with as much currency as they desire, but that they must truthfully report it all to a CBP officer. It’s that simple,” said Kim Der-Yeghiayan, Acting CBP’s Area Port Director for the Area Port of Washington, D.C.