14 DAY TRIAL // Customs agents at JFK International Airport in New York arrested a man who was trying to smuggle more than 7 pounds (3.17 kg) of cocaine into the country.
The incident happened on March 30, when Yudishtir Maharaj flew from Port of Spain, Trinidad, into John F. Kennedy Airport. Customs and Border Protection officers stopped the passenger for a random search and were stunned to discover he was carrying drugs stuffed inside three large packages of frozen goat meat.
When officers X-rayed the meat, three square objects showed up inside it. They probed the food and a white powder came out of it, which later tested positive for cocaine.
According to New York Post, the 24-year-old man was turned over to Homeland Security Investigations. He claimed he had no idea the cocaine bundles were inside his frozen food.
However, he was arrested and faces federal drug smuggling charges.
“This latest seizure demonstrates the vigilance of our CBP officers and their excellence in detecting those who would try to smuggle these illegal substances,” Robert E. Perez, director of Customs and Border Protection in New York, said.
The 7.35 pounds (3.33 kg) of narcotics found inside his luggage have an estimated street value of between $1.2 and $1.8 million (€866,000-€1,300,000).