Metropolitan Airport NewsMetropolitan Airport News
  • Airport News
    • Publisher’s Message
    • Fast Five
    • On Duty
    • Air Cargo
    • Airline News
    • Airport Community
    • Airport Employment News
    • Airport Safety & Security
    • Company Spotlight
    • Ground Services
    • Intermodal
    • New York Aviation History
    • Non-Rev Traveler
  • Airport & Aviation Events
  • Airport Employment
  • Latest Issue
  • Login

Subscribe for Updates

Get the latest local airport and aviation news delivered right into your inbox each week!

News Updates
Norse Atlantic Airways announces first flight from Paris to New York, JFK with daily service.

Norse Atlantic Airways Celebrates Inaugural Flight from Paris to New York

March 27, 2023
Michael Huerta, Former Administrator of the United States Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and Delta Air Lines Board Member

Joby Appoints Former FAA Administrator and Delta Board Member Michael Huerta to the Company’s Board of Directors

March 25, 2023
Elise Eberwein accepts the CF Foundation’s Jena Award on March 23.

American Airlines Donates $1.1 Million to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation

March 24, 2023
Facebook Twitter Instagram
Metropolitan Airport NewsMetropolitan Airport News
  • Airport News
    • Publisher’s Message
    • Fast Five
    • On Duty
    • Air Cargo
    • Airline News
    • Airport Community
    • Airport Employment News
    • Airport Safety & Security
    • Company Spotlight
    • Ground Services
    • Intermodal
    • New York Aviation History
    • Non-Rev Traveler
  • Airport & Aviation Events
  • Airport Employment
  • Latest Issue
  • Login
Metropolitan Airport NewsMetropolitan Airport News
Home»Airport Safety & Security»CBP at JFK Arrests Cocaine Smuggler
Airport Safety & Security

CBP at JFK Arrests Cocaine Smuggler

U. S. Customs and Border Protection Officers Detect Cocaine in Wheelchair Wheels
Metropolitan Airport NewsBy Metropolitan Airport NewsNovember 15, 2022No Comments2 Mins Read
Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email

The wheels on this passenger’s wheelchair stopped going round and round on arrival at John F. Kennedy International Airport when U. S. Customs and Border Protection officers seized her loaded wheelchair.

On November 10, Ms. Emelinda Paulino De Rivas, a citizen of the Dominican Republic, arrived on a flight from Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. Ms. De Rivas was traveling in a wheelchair when CBP officers decided to interview her. CBP officers noticed that the wheels on the wheelchair were not turning, so they x-rayed the wheelchair and noticed an anomaly in all four wheels. CBP officers probed the four wheels revealing a white powder that tested positive for cocaine. 

Ms. De Rivas was arrested for the importation of a controlled substance and was turned over to Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).  The weight of the cocaine seized was approximately 28 lbs. with an estimated street value of $450,000.

This translates to approximately 75,000 doses (100-200 mg.), a lethal dose of cocaine is roughly one to three grams, so the amount seized by CBP and kept out of our neighborhoods amounts to roughly 6,000 lethal doses.

“CBP stands steadfast and determined in working with our partners to identify the trans-national criminal networks responsible for importing these deadly drugs into our neighborhoods,” said Francis J. Russo, Director of CBP’s New York Field Operations.  “CBP’s mission is to guard the borders and ports of entry 24/7, 365 days a year to prevent these dangerous drugs from potentially killing our family, friends, and neighbors.”

Ms. De Rivas now faces federal narcotics smuggling charges and will be prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the U.S. Eastern District Court of New York.

Share. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email
Metropolitan Airport News
  • Website
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn

Produced by a team of aviation professionals and enthusiasts, our mission is to inform and update the more than 68,000 employees who work on the metropolitan New York airport properties, as well as the many others that provide goods and services in the surrounding communities.

RELATED NEWS & UPDATES

TSA Federal Air Marshals

TSA Federal Air Marshals Hiring Event at Newark

February 24, 2023
TSA Ramps Up Safety Measures As Pandemic Continues

TSA Broke Yet Another Record Nationally for Firearm Discoveries In 2022

February 21, 2023
Dog Screening at LGA Airport

TSA Tips On Traveling With Pets Through Airport Security Checkpoints

February 14, 2023
Loaded Handgun LGA

Number of Guns Detected at New York TSA Checkpoints Increased In 2022

January 18, 2023
TSA Screening

Statement Regarding Pay Parity for TSA Employees

January 10, 2023
New York State REAL ID driver license

New York Residents Reminded to Get Their REAL ID to Board an Airplane

December 6, 2022
Add A Comment

Leave A Reply Cancel Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

AIRPORT & AVIATION EVENTS
LGA Airport Hiring Event
March 28, 2023
9:00 AM to 2:00 PM
  • LaGuardia Airport-(LGA)
East Elmhurst, New York
FDU Master of Public Administration Open House
March 28, 2023
11:00 AM to 2:00 PM
  • John F. Kennedy International Airport-(JFK)
Port Authority Building
Jamaica, New York
MWBE Certification Webinar
March 28, 2023
6:00 PM
  • >> More Airport & Aviation Events

Subscribe for Weekly Email Updates

Get the latest local airport news, events, and jobs delivered right into your inbox each week.

Metropolitan Airport News provides timely news, information and updates for both Port Authority of New York & New Jersey (PANYNJ) employees and businesses that provide services at, and around the major New York airports (JFK, LGA, EWR).

John F. Kennedy International Airport
PO Box 300877
Jamaica, NY 11430 USA
Phone: (347) 396-0904
Email Us

Facebook Twitter YouTube LinkedIn Flickr
MARCH 2023 ISSUE
Metropolitan Airport News March 2023
LATEST COMMENTS
  • Julia Lauria-Blum on Larger Than Life
  • Robert lee on Jane Mrosko
  • Jerelyn Zontini on Larger Than Life
  • Tom Krpata on The Golden Age of Airline Employment
  • About Us
  • Advertising Options
  • Charitable Giving Program
  • Back Issue Archive
  • Contact Us
© 2023 Airport Media, Inc. All rights reserved.

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.