On the morning of Tuesday, August 10th, a major drug seizure was made at Miami International airport. The narcotics were actually discovered onboard the aircraft, which was a Caribbean Airlines Boeing 737-800, which had landed in Miami after flying from Piarco International Airport on the island of Trinidad.
6.5 kilograms of cocaine
On Tuesday, August 10th, a Caribbean Airlines Boeing 737-800 was performing a routine flight from the island of Trinidad to Miami International Airport. The aircraft departed Piarco International Airport in Trinidad for Miami at approximately 07:45 local time. The nearly four-hour flight saw the plane arrive in Miami at 11:32 local time.
According to Trinidad Express, the six-and-a-half kilograms of cocaine was discovered on the aircraft. The media outlet reports that the drugs were found “in the baggage carrier area.” This would indicate the aircraft’s belly cargo hold. However, we’ve inquired with the airline, as well as the airport, for further details and specifics. At the time of this article’s publication, no additional information has been received.
The airline tells Trinidad Express that the matter is currently being handled by law enforcement, although the agency in charge of the case was not disclosed.
The aircraft operating the flight was registered 9Y-KIN, which is a nearly 21-year-old 737-800. Although this plane arrived nearly 20 minutes ahead of schedule, it departed Miami late. In fact, the aircraft departed from MIA nearly an hour after its scheduled departure time. While aircraft can face delays for all sorts of reasons, the timing of this particular delay lines up with the discovery of the narcotics.
According to Statista, 6.5kg of cocaine had a 2019 street price of $120 in the United States. Therefore, the discovery would have an estimated value of $780,000.
Other notable drug discoveries
This isn’t the first discovery of illicit drugs involving air travel this year. Indeed, this is the third story Simple Flying has reported on in 2021.
In late January, ₹68 crores ($9.28 million) worth of heroin was found during a search of two passengers traveling from Uganda. These travelers hid the narcotics inside their checked bags, stored in 51 separate pouches. These pouches were hidden in a false cavity of the checked-in bags, along with books. To date, this has been Delhi Airport’s largest-ever drug bust.
Then, in early May, sniffer dogs foiled a drug run out of Simón Bolívar International Airport in Venezuela. The dogs, along with their handlers from Venezuela’s Regional Anti-Drug Intelligence Unit, found cocaine when inspecting a TAP Air Portugal cargo flight. The flight used one of TAP Air Portugal’s newer Airbus A330-900neo aircraft.
At this time, there are no further details regarding Tuesday’s incident. Indeed, the aircraft has resumed regular service, flying from Miami back to Trinidad the same day. Since Tuesday, the aircraft has also flown another service to Miami as well as to Cheddi Jagan International Airport in Guyana.
What are your thoughts on this incident? Let us know by leaving a comment.
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