The FBI announced today that they have arrested 18 people in a drug smuggling operation that operated out of JFK airport. During the 2 year investigation, the feds seized 90 pounds of cocaine and 50 pounds of heroin. The drugs were smuggled by airport personnel by placing packages of drugs in passenger's baggage (after security screening) at one airport then removing them at another airport, then returning the bags to the passenger.
This should send shivers down every flyer's spine. What would happen if a package was not picked up for some unforeseen reason? What if you were caught with a few pounds of heroin in your baggage? Would you use the "I have no idea how that got in there!!" line? Do you think anyone would really believe you?
It didn't work for Schapelle Corby who is now serving a 20 year sentence in an Indonesian prison for smuggling 9 lbs of marijuana in her unlocked luggage. Corby has long maintained that she didn't know how the drugs go in there and there's some evidence that she's telling the truth. Even circumstantially, it's hard to fathom he improbability of someone, on a family vacation, smuggling 9 lbs of marijuana into an Muslim country that is well known for its harsh drug laws.
In the United States, the federal government needs to crack down hard on this type of smuggling. IMHO, if an airline/airport employee is caught smuggling ANYTHING in passenger luggage, they deserve life in prison. Not so much for the relatively minor issue of drugs, but the huge potential for terrorism. How closely are they checking the "box of cocaine" to make sure that's what it really is? How much would it take to bribe them to take on a box of unknown origin?
The airline security breach in this case is massive and frightening. And you just know it's still happening somewhere.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment