Officers at Dulles intercept 34 pounds of ketamine found in rush baggage

LOUDOUN COUNTY, Va. ( DC News Now ) — U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers at Washington Dulles International Airport intercepted a rush baggage that contained 34 pounds of ketamine hydrochloride.

On Aug. 8, CBP agriculture specialists did an X-ray on a rushed suitcase that had arrived from Amsterdam and noticed eight pouches of a white crystalline substance.

CBP officers were then immediately notified and the substance was quickly identified as ketamine hydrochloride.

The ketamine found had a value of about $900,000.

Due to the drug being found in rushed baggage, the traveler of the suitcase was not at the airport at the time of the discovery.

Ketamine hydrochloride is a Schedule III non-narcotic compound regulated under the Controlled Substances Act, according to CBP.

“Transnational criminal organizations continue to smuggle their dangerous drugs into the United States, but Customs and Border Protection officers and agriculture specialists work very hard every day to intercept these illicit shipments,” said Marc Calixte, Area Port Director for CBP’s Area Port of Washington, D.C. “Our narcotics interdiction efforts are one way in which CBP helps to keep our communities safe from the scourge of dangerous drugs.”

Officers are continuing to investigate.

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