U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) seized approximately 99 pounds of prohibited agricultural and wildlife products from a suitcase that arrived on a flight from Thailand. The discovery was made Monday after CBP K-9 Maisy, a beagle trained to detect agricultural products, alerted officers to the bag.
Discovery Details
According to CBP, the seized items included 50 pounds of meat, 33 pounds of mangoes, garlic, bamboo, and banana plants. Additionally, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service took custody of 16 pounds of Bengal monitor lizard parts found within the luggage.
Officials have not yet released the identity of the traveler or stated whether any charges will be filed. CBP highlighted the find on Facebook, celebrating the successful detection by K-9 Maisy.
Previous Incidents
This incident at LAX follows a similar seizure at the San Ysidro Port of Entry in San Diego County in early July. In that case, officials intercepted 436 fish of various species being imported by three individuals without valid fishing licenses. Mexico's fishing regulations permit only licensed fishermen to possess 20 fish per person of those species.
Another instance occurred in May at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, where a CBP K-9 named Merla discovered 100 pork and chicken sandwiches in luggage belonging to passengers arriving from Thailand. These items were subsequently destroyed.