Tuesday 15 November 2022 09:23 PM Woman is arrested at New York's JFK airport after hiding 28 POUNDS of cocaine ... trends now
A woman travelling from the Dominican Republic to the United States has been arrested after close to half a million dollars' worth of cocaine was found in the tires of her wheelchair.
Emelinda Paulino De Rivas, who is a citizen of the departure port, arrived in New York City's JFK airport on a flight from Punta Cana, which sits on the eastern most tip of the country, on November 10.
After noticing that the wheels of her support chair were not turning US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) decided to interview De Rivas.
'[CBP] x-rayed the wheelchair and noticed an anomaly in all four wheels,' CBP said in a statement following the incident.
'CBP officers probed the four wheels revealing a white powder that tested positive for cocaine.'
About 28 pounds of cocaine was seized by officers which is estimated to be 75,000 doses of the drug with a street value of $450,000, according to CBP.
Emelinda Paulino De Rivas who was travelling from the Dominican Republic to the United States has been arrested after close to half a million dollars' worth of cocaine was found in the tyres of her wheelchair
US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) decided to interview De Rivas after noticing that the wheels of her support chair were not turning and found a white powder which tested positive for cocaine in her tires
'A lethal dose of cocaine is roughly one to three grams, so the amount seized by CBP and kept out of our neighborhoods amounts to roughly 6,000 lethal doses,' CBP explained.
De Rivas is facing federal narcotics smuggling charges and will be prosecuted by the US Attorney's Office in the US Eastern District Court of New York. A trial has not yet been set.
According to the CBP website's most recent report nationwide drug seizures by weight were down 5.4 percent in October compared to September.
Cocaine seizures nationwide saw a 104 percent increase over the month while Fentanyl saw a 3.5 percent increase.
Meanwhile Methamphetamine and Heroin seizures decreased by 21 and 37 percent respectively.
'CBP stands steadfast and determined in working with our partners to identify the trans- national criminal networks responsible for importing these deadly drugs into our neighborhoods,' said Francis J. Russo, Director of CBP's New York Field Operations.
'CBP's mission is to guard the borders and ports of entry 24/7, 365 days a year to prevent these dangerous drugs from potentially killing our family, friends, and neighbors.'
According to the United Nations Office on drugs and crime's most recent study on drug market trends released in 2021, 'cocaine manufacture reached record levels in 2019.'
'The output of global cocaine manufacture doubled between 2014 and 2019 to reach an estimated 1,784 tons (expressed at 100 per cent purity) in 2019, the highest level ever recorded,' the report explained.
'At the same time, growth in the output of cocaine manufacture has been slowing, pointing to a
