Guyanese nabbed at JFK airport with cocaine in shoes
NEW YORK, United States (CMC) — A Guyanese national has been arrested on arrival at the John F Kennedy International Airport with the authorities indicating that cocaine had been found in shoes in his luggage..
The United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency said that Amaziah Hohenkirk “tried to walk past US Customs and Border Protection officers, but was stopped in his tracks.”
The agency said that CBP officers stopped Hohenkirk, a Guyanese citizen, who had arrived at the New York airport on a flight from Georgetown, Guyana, via Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago on February 9.
During the course of the inspection, CBP said officers discovered four pairs of sneakers and two pairs of shoes in his luggage that contained a white powder that tested positive for cocaine.
Hohenkirk was arrested for the importation of a controlled substance and was turned over to US Homeland Security Investigations.
The total weight of cocaine seized was about 4 lbs. with a street value estimated to be US$67,000, CBP said.
“This latest seizure demonstrates the vigilance of our CBP officers, and their excellence in detecting those who would try to smuggle these illegal substances,” said Robert E Perez, Director, Field Operations New York.
He said Hohenkirk now faces US federal narcotics smuggling charges, and will be prosecuted by the US Attorney’s Office in the US Eastern District Court of New York.