First it was the 3,400 pounds of mitten crabs. Now, it’s 50 pounds of meth hidden inside of decorative soap.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the Cincinnati Express Consignment Operations hub in Erlanger were alerted to a weird package during their inspections by a drug-detecting dog on May 20.
X-rays showed “inconsistencies” in the package and, according to a press release, “When officers inspected the parcel, they found bars of soap. However, 37 pounds of methamphetamine was emulsified in the soap.”
That package, from a shipper in Mexico, was destined for Atlanta.
The next day, CBP found another package from the same shipper on its way to Minnesota. That package, again, full of soap, was found to contain 13.5 pounds of meth. For a grand total of 50 pounds of soapy meth.
CBP says the street value of the meth was $217,000. No word on the street value of the decorative hand soap.
The release says, “According to the DEA, methamphetamine is the drug most frequently identified in their reporting. About half of the DEA domestic field divisions are reporting price increases at the retail and/or wholesale level, particularly in areas where methamphetamine is most prevalent. The DEA is also reporting decreases in availability.”
This article appears in May 6 – Jun 14, 2020.
