Over 50 pounds of marijuana found in Massachusetts woman's luggage at Pittsburgh International Airport
A Massachusetts woman was caught with over 50 pounds of marijuana in her luggage at Pittsburgh International Airport, U.S. Customs and Border Protection announced on Friday.
While inspecting passenger baggage being loaded onto a London-bound flight on Saturday, officers said they found several vacuum-sealed packages of marijuana inside two suitcases. Officers learned the luggage belonged to 30-year-old Jetta Monet Corbett of Brockton, Massachusetts, who was detained at the departure gate.
Officers intercept 54 pounds of UK-bound marijuana
During a secondary examination, Customs and Border Protection said officers found a total of 49 vacuum-sealed packages of a substance that field tested positive for marijuana.
Authorities said the marijuana weighed over 54 pounds and had a street value of about $240,000. Depending on how strong the drug was, Customs and Border Protection said the shipment could have fetched two to three times more if Corbett had made it to Europe.
(Photo: U.S. Customs and Border Protection)
Customs and Border Protection turned the marijuana and Corbett over to the Allegheny County police, who arrested her. She's charged with one felony count of possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance and one misdemeanor count of possession of a controlled substance.
Criminals are using flights to move weed, CBP says
Bulk marijuana seizures at Pittsburgh International Airport are rare, but Customs and Border Protection said officers have been seeing a trend of "transnational criminal organizations" trying to move marijuana through passenger baggage and express air delivery to Europe and Africa, where it can generate huge profits.
"Anyone considering making a quick buck by carrying bulk marijuana loads for drug trafficking organizations should realize that the consequences you face can be severe when Customs and Border Protection officers catch you," said James Hindes, Customs and Border Protection's acting port director for the Port of Pittsburgh.
"One way that law enforcement agencies can combat transnational criminal organizations is to hit them hard in the wallet, so CBP will continue to seize these marijuana loads when we encounter them and deprive criminals of this illicit revenue."
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