Police Seize 28 Pounds Of Cocaine Worth Almost Half A Million Dollars From Woman's Wheelchair

A woman was busted by airport security for attempting to smuggle half-a-million dollars worth of cocaine into the United States. The stash was found hidden inside the wheels of her wheelchair. On Nov 10, authorities at John F. Kennedy International Airport pulled aside Emelinda Paulino De Rivas, a citizen of the Dominican Republic, and was detained for questioning after security noticed something was not quite right with her wheelchair.

According to ABC News, the suspect flew in from Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, and arrived in New York City. The Customs Border Protection officers x-rayed the woman’s wheelchair and discovered an anomaly within all four wheels. In a statement following the incident, CBP officers said they investigated the wheels and discovered a white, powdered substance that tested positive for cocaine. The officers tallied the total weight of the smuggled narcotics to 28 lbs. The amount of cocaine was estimated to have a street value of approximately $450,000.

Upon De Rivas’ arrest, the CBP mentioned the lethal dose of cocaine is one to three grams. The amount that was seized from the suspect amounted to roughly 6,000 lethal doses. De Rivas now faces federal charges of smuggling dangerous narcotics into the U.S., and will thus be prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the U.S. Eastern District Court of New York. However, a date has yet to be set for De Rivas’ trial.

Francis J. Russo, Director of CBP's New York Field Operations said in the statement that the CBP remains steadfast and determined in working with their partners to identify the transnational criminal networks responsible for smuggling dangerous drugs into the U.S. and its communities. He added that the mission of the CBP is to continually safeguard the borders and ports, to prevent deadly narcotics from killing families, friends, and neighbors.

Reports said a recent study on the drug market by the United Nations Office on drugs and crime showed the manufacturing of cocaine reached an all-time high in 2019. At the same time, statistics also said that the growth of cocaine manufacture has been slowing down pointing to a trend of stabilization.