Heroin mixed with fentanyl seized from cruise passenger returning from Mexico sailing
Heroin mixed with fentanyl seized from cruise passenger returning from Mexico sailing
Show Caption
Hide Caption
On the frontlines of the fentanyl crisis, is Naloxone the answer?
Deaths from synthetic opioids are falling. What's behind the promising trend?
CBP seized fentanyl and heroin from a passenger arriving at the Port of Galveston.
The passenger, a U.S. citizen returning from a cruise to Mexico, was arrested.
Drug seizures at the southwest border increased overall in fiscal year 2024, but fentanyl seizures decreased.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection seized close to 72 grams of heroin mixed with fentanyl from a cruise passenger arriving in Galveston, Texas.
The drugs were found in prescription pill bottles during a baggage search on April 20 as the traveler returned from a Mexico sailing, according to an April 22 news release. The agency also seized 96 grams of THC vape oil.
The passenger, a U.S. citizen, was arrested and turned over to local authorities. CBP did not identify the traveler or the cruise line they were sailing with, and referred USA TODAY's request for comment to the Port of Galveston Police Department.
Police did not immediately respond to a separate request for comment.
'Fentanyl is a weapon of mass destruction in this country and CBP works every day to keep Americans safe from dangerous and deadly drugs,' Acting CBP Area Port Director John Landry said in the release. 'This is a significant priority for CBP and our law enforcement partners. Thanks to the vigilance of our brave and dedicated CBP officers, we continue to intercept these deadly substances at our ports of entry before they can do damage in our local communities.'
One kilogram of fentanyl – a synthetic opioid – can result in up to 500,000 deaths, the agency said. Those kinds of drugs are a leading cause of overdose deaths in the U.S.
Drug seizures at the southwest border rose to about 275,000 pounds in fiscal year 2024, up from roughly 241,000 the year before, according to CBP statistics. However, fentanyl seizures dropped to about 21,000 pounds from nearly 27,000. Close to 6,800 pounds have been seized to date in the region in fiscal year 2025.
Nathan Diller is a consumer travel reporter for USA TODAY based in Nashville. You can reach him at ndiller@usatoday.com.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Business Upturn
2 hours ago
- Business Upturn
SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler Calls on California Governor Gavin Newsom to Request Disaster Declaration for Small Businesses Impacted by L.A. Riots
By GlobeNewswire Published on June 10, 2025, 06:15 IST WASHINGTON, June 09, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Today, Kelly Loeffler, Administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), called on California Governor Gavin Newsom to request an SBA Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) Declaration to authorize the agency to begin delivering urgent assistance to small businesses across Los Angeles that have been ransacked by rioters since civil unrest began last week. The agency stands ready to deliver critical aid to innocent American victims – whose storefronts have been looted and destroyed by the migrant mob that is wreaking havoc in defense of criminal illegal aliens. 'We're giving Gavin Newsom the opportunity to stop siding with criminal illegal aliens and start siding with law-abiding Americans – many of whom have lost everything to the violent and destructive riots across Los Angeles,' said SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler. 'The migrant mob has looted stores, destroyed storefronts, and committed criminal acts of vandalism against our small businesses. Although local leaders are allowing Los Angeles to burn, federal partners are ready to help American citizens rebuild – and we will do so, as soon as the Governor answers their call for help.' For the safety of employees and small business owners, Administrator Loeffler recently announced that SBA would be relocating its Regional Office out of Los Angeles due to the city's refusal to cooperate with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The Regional Office is located mere steps from the violence that continues to occur in downtown Los Angeles – and where U.S. Marines have been deployed to restore order. The SBA has provided the state of California with all relevant information needed to request an EIDL Declaration – which will allow small businesses in Los Angeles to apply for low-interest, long-term loans of up to $2 million to help them rebuild following the catastrophic violence of this weekend. Given the urgency of the situation, the SBA is committed to approving any such disaster declaration as soon as it is submitted by Governor Newsom. Disclaimer: The above press release comes to you under an arrangement with GlobeNewswire. Business Upturn takes no editorial responsibility for the same. GlobeNewswire provides press release distribution services globally, with substantial operations in North America and Europe.
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler Calls on California Governor Gavin Newsom to Request Disaster Declaration for Small Businesses Impacted by L.A. Riots
Agency Requests Authorization to Deliver Aid to Victims of Looting, Property Destruction WASHINGTON, June 09, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today, Kelly Loeffler, Administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), called on California Governor Gavin Newsom to request an SBA Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) Declaration to authorize the agency to begin delivering urgent assistance to small businesses across Los Angeles that have been ransacked by rioters since civil unrest began last week. The agency stands ready to deliver critical aid to innocent American victims – whose storefronts have been looted and destroyed by the migrant mob that is wreaking havoc in defense of criminal illegal aliens. 'We're giving Gavin Newsom the opportunity to stop siding with criminal illegal aliens and start siding with law-abiding Americans – many of whom have lost everything to the violent and destructive riots across Los Angeles,' said SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler. 'The migrant mob has looted stores, destroyed storefronts, and committed criminal acts of vandalism against our small businesses. Although local leaders are allowing Los Angeles to burn, federal partners are ready to help American citizens rebuild – and we will do so, as soon as the Governor answers their call for help.' For the safety of employees and small business owners, Administrator Loeffler recently announced that SBA would be relocating its Regional Office out of Los Angeles due to the city's refusal to cooperate with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The Regional Office is located mere steps from the violence that continues to occur in downtown Los Angeles – and where U.S. Marines have been deployed to restore order. The SBA has provided the state of California with all relevant information needed to request an EIDL Declaration – which will allow small businesses in Los Angeles to apply for low-interest, long-term loans of up to $2 million to help them rebuild following the catastrophic violence of this weekend. Given the urgency of the situation, the SBA is committed to approving any such disaster declaration as soon as it is submitted by Governor Newsom. CONTACT: SBA HQ Press Team U.S. Small Business Administration press_office@ in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
Chinese PhD student from Wuhan arrested smuggling biological materials after deleting electronic evidence: DOJ
A national from the People's Republic of China (PRC) has been arrested after allegedly smuggling biological materials into the U.S. and making false statements to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers about the contents of her packages. The Department of Justice said Chengxuan Han is charged with smuggling goods into the U.S. and making false statements. According to the complaint, Han is a citizen of the PRC who is working on her Ph.D. at the College of Life Science and Technology in the Huazhong University of Science and Technology in Wuhan. Han allegedly sent four packages to the U.S. from the PRC in 2024 and 2025, containing concealed biological material. The packages were sent to individuals at a laboratory at the University of Michigan. 'Coming For Us': Expert Sounds Alarm On Ccp's Mission To 'Kill Americans' After Fbi Makes Shocking Arrests Han arrived at the Detroit Metropolitan Airport on Sunday on a J1 visa, when CBP officers conducted an inspection. Read On The Fox News App During the inspection, Han allegedly made false statements about the packages and the materials she previously shipped to the U.S. CBP officers also discovered the content of Han's electronic device had been deleted three days before she arrived in the U.S. After the inspection, FBI agents and agents from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) interviewed Han. During the interview, Han allegedly admitted to sending the packages and revealed they contained material related to round worms. She also allegedly confessed to making false statements to CBP officers during the inspection. "The alleged smuggling of biological materials by this alien from a science and technology university in Wuhan, China—to be used at a University of Michigan laboratory—is part of an alarming pattern that threatens our security," U.S. Attorney Jerome F. Gorgon, Jr. said. "The American taxpayer should not be underwriting a PRC-based smuggling operation at one of our crucial public institutions." Chinese Official Claims No Knowledge Of Fungus Situation, Says China Requires Citizens 'Abide By Local Laws' Han's arrest comes on the same day another Chinese national, 42-year-old Shenghua Wen, pleaded guilty to federal crimes after he exported firearms, ammunition and other military items to North Korea, at the direction of North Korean government officials. Wen, a citizen of the People's Republic of China, came to the U.S. in 2012 on a student visa, where he remained illegally despite his visa expiring in December 2013. Before coming to the U.S., the DOJ said, Wen met with North Korean government officials at a North Korean Embassy in China. At the meeting, the officials directed Wen to obtain goods on behalf of North Korea. Foreign Nationals Charged Amid Trump Visa Crackdown For Scheme To Smuggle Us Military Equipment Into China Nearly 10 years later, North Korean government officials contacted Wen using an online messaging platform in 2022, instructing him to purchase and smuggle firearms, sensitive technology and ammunition, from the U.S. to North Korea via China. The DOJ said the plea agreement shows Wen shipped at least three containers of firearms from Port of Long Beach in California to China, which then went to North Korea, in 2023. He also took steps to hide that he was shipping firearms to North Korea illegally by falsifying information regarding the contents of the containers. Chinese National Smuggled Illegal Immigrants To American Territory As Us Sees Influx From Adversary Many of the firearms Wen sent to North Korea were purchased in Texas. He then drove the firearms to California, where he arranged to have them shipped. According to the DOJ, Wen purchased a firearms business in Houston in May 2023 using money from one of his contacts in North Korea. By December 2023, one of the shipments left Port of Long Beach and arrived in Hong Kong in January 2024. It was then transported from Hong Kong to Nampo, North Korea. Wen intended to send another shipment to North Korea containing about 60,000 rounds of 9mm ammunition in September, as requested by North Korean officials, the DOJ said. Former Us Army Intelligence Analyst Sentenced For Selling Sensitive Documents To Chinese National He also obtained sensitive technology with the intention of sending it to North Korea. The technology, the DOJ said, included a chemical threat identification device and a handheld broadband receiver that detects known, unknown, illegal, disruptive or interfering transmissions. The DOJ added that he also acquired or offered to acquire a civilian airplane engine and thermal imaging system that could be mounted on a drone or some other aircraft for reconnaissance and target identification. North Korean officials wired Wen about $2 million during the operation, to be used for obtaining firearms and other goods. Ultimately, he admitted during the plea agreement that he knew it was illegal to ship the items to North Korea, while also admitting to never having the necessary licenses to ship the ammunition, firearms and sensitive technology to North Korea. Wen also confessed to working at the direction of North Korean officials and did not provide notification to the Attorney General of the U.S. As part of the agreement, Wen faces a maximum prison sentence of 20 years for violating the IEEPA and 10 years for acting as an illegal agent of a foreign government. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Aug. article source: Chinese PhD student from Wuhan arrested smuggling biological materials after deleting electronic evidence: DOJ
