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  4. CBP at JFK Seizes Cocaine in Luggage, Officers Catch Cocaine inside Hand Rails

CBP at JFK Seizes Cocaine in Luggage, Officers Catch Cocaine inside Hand Rails

Release Date
Fri, 01/09/2015

JAMAICA, N.Y. — An arriving passenger at John F. Kennedy International Airport tried smuggling cocaine into the United States. Fortunately, U. S. Customs and Border Protection officers were there to derail her attempt.

suitcase

CBP officers at JFK discover cocaine hidden in hand rail of suitcase.

On Jan. 6, CBP officers stopped Ms. Chevelle Rusheen Nesbeth who arrived on a flight from Montego Bay, Jamaica. During the course of the inspection, CBP officers felt an unusually dense hand rail in each suitcase. Ms. Nesbeth was escorted to a private search room where CBP officers probed the hand rails and discovered a white powdery substance which tested positive for cocaine. Ms. Nesbeth was arrested for the importation of a controlled substance and was turned over to Homeland Security Investigations. The total weight of cocaine seized was approximately 2.5 lbs. with an approximate street value of more than $45,000.

“This latest seizure demonstrates the vigilance of our CBP officers, and their excellence in detecting those who would try to smuggle these illegal substances,” said Robert E. Perez, director, Field Operations New York.

Ms. Nesbeth now faces federal narcotics smuggling charges and will be prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the U.S. Eastern District Court of New York.

All defendants are considered innocent until proven guilty. 

U.S. Customs and Border Protection is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control and protection of our nation's borders at and between the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.

Last Modified: Feb 03, 2021