Jamaica’s Tastiest Patties apparently had a little more than it promised.
On January 17, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers at John F. Kennedy International Airport discovered $70,000-worth of cocaine stuffed inside a box for Jamaican beef patties.
The officers intercepted passenger Chantal Alecia Edward, a Jamaican citizen, who was arriving from Kingston, Jamaica.
Upon further inspection, the customs officers found the box and escorted Bedward to a private search room. When the box of beef patties was opened, officers found 12 duct-taped packages instead.
When the packages were probed, they produced a white powder that tested positive for cocaine. The approximate weight of the cocaine was 4 pounds.
“This seizure demonstrates the vigilance and dedication demonstrated daily by CBP officers at JFK, in keeping these prohibited and dangerous narcotics off the streets of our communities,” said Robert E. Perez, director of field operations in New York for CBP.
Bedward was arrested for the importation of a controlled substance and turned over to Homeland Security Investigations.
She faces federal narcotics smuggling charges and will be prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District.
