Customs screenings and traffic stops led to an unusual discovery for Florida law enforcement last month. In the state’s northern panhandle region, the highway patrol arrested two men after finding narcotics in a bag labeled “bag full of drugs”.
Troopers pulled them over for speeding before confirming suspicions of drug trafficking from the indiscreet advertisement.
A traffic stop for unlawful speed on I-10 yesterday bagged two drug traffickers and their not so inconspicuous drug paraphernalia. Troopers seized meth, GHB, cocaine MDMA and fentanyl. Thanks to the Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office for the assist. @FLHSMV pic.twitter.com/Fu3ASymrtL
— FHP Panhandle (@FHPPanhandle) February 3, 2020
Authorities also searched the vehicle, turning up methamphetamine, cocaine, MDMA, fentanyl and GHB. GHB is more commonly referred to as the “date rape” drug.
The two men now face charges of drug possession and trafficking. Officers for the Santa Rosa county sheriff, which aided in the search, posted a mocking note to Facebook, cautioning other would-be traffickers.
“Note to self – do not traffic your illegal narcotics in bags labeled ‘Bag Full Of Drugs’. Our K-9s can read,” the warning read.
Meanwhile, in the southern part of the state, US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) are touting an unusual contraband discovery of their own: 1,400lb of dried shark fins.
Officials seized more than a dozen boxes of shark fins, valued between $700,000 and $1m, at a Miami port in late January. CBP authorities told CBS News the boxes were falsely declared.
Shark fins are commonly used for cooking and traditional medicine around the world.
Customs agents said the shipment violated the Lacey Act, which bans trading illegally obtained wildlife. Many of the shark species confiscated in the search are included in an international trade agreement protecting endangered species of wild flora and fauna.
The US Fish and Wildlife Service officials said the shipment was probably traveling from South America en route to Asia. According to campaign group Oceana, about 73 million sharks end up traded in global markets each year.
Sara Amundson, president of the Humane Society Legislative Fund, told CBS the US “plays a key role as an international transit hub for shark fins”. Sharks typically suffocate or bleed to death after having their fins cut off by smugglers who then toss them back in the water.
CBP has yet to announce criminal charges, as the investigation continues.
