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Fashion Fix: 3 Pounds Of Heroin Found In Sari Hem At JFK Airport
By
Jen Chung
Published Aug 12, 2011
Modified Aug 12, 2011
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By
Jen Chung
Published Aug 12, 2011
Modified Aug 12, 2011
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Sneakers are popular for smuggling drugs, what with their thick soles, but who knew that saris were also used in drug trafficking? Customs and Border Protection agents became suspicious when a package shipped from India had a very strong chemical odor, so they opened up the package at JFK Airport. Inside, they found many of the Indian dresses... with heroin sewn into the hems.
According to the Daily News, "When officers examined the three dresses that were inside, they noticed each had hems that were much thicker than normal. A closer look at the hefty hems revealed the seams were stuffed with a tan powdery substance that tested positive for smack. The contraband saris held about 2.8 pounds of pure heroin, which has a total street value of about $90,000, the agency said."
A Customs spokesman seemed a little weary, "Smugglers have used just about everything you can think of. That includes wearing double sets of underwear with drugs sewn into the first pair, drugs hidden inside chocolate candy or under shipments of Valentine's flowers... You think of something that's new - it's been tried."
Tagged
customs and border protection
drug smuggling
drugs
heroin
jfk airport
sari
Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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