CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Federal authorities say a man has been arrested in Charlotte, North Carolina, after he was stopped in the city’s airport with more than 23 pounds of cocaine concealed in the seat cushions of a motorized wheelchair.
U. S. Customs and Border Protection officers encountered the traveler as he was arriving at Charlotte Douglas International Airport from the Dominican Republic this week, according to a Friday news release.
“His answers didn’t match up. His physical purported handicap did not match up. That was a tell-tale sign that there was something suspicious,” Mike Prado, a Homeland Security Investigations deputy special agent, told WSOC-TV.
The four packages containing cocaine were discovered within the seat cushions and had an estimated street value of $378,000, according to the news release.
The 22-year-old man was charged with trafficking in cocaine. Officials say he was a lawful, permanent U.S. resident.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
Success. Please wait for the page to reload. If the page does not reload within 5 seconds, please refresh the page.
Enter your email and password to access comments.
Hi, to comment on stories you must . This profile is in addition to your subscription and website login.
Already have a commenting profile? .
Invalid username/password.
Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration.
Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.
Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.