With all the recent talk of border control, TSA and airport employees nationwide have been a focal point. However, they were the target of an alleged cocaine-smuggling operation dating back almost two decades. A dozen TSA and airport employees were indicted by a federal grand jury in Puerto Rico on February 8.
On Monday, the U.S. Department of Justice announced that the defendants transported suitcases filled with cocaine through security at the Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Approximately 20 tons of cocaine were transported from 1998 to 2016.
After the drug-filled suitcases were dropped off at the check-in counter by a mule, one of the defendants would retrieve the baggage and put it through the X-ray machine. The X-ray machine was operated by another smuggle ring participant who pushed the luggage through. Another defendant would then carry the drugs to the airplanes avoiding detection.
Federal security director for Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, José Baquero, said on Monday, “TSA has zero tolerance for employees engaged in criminal activity to facilitate contraband smuggling.”
San Juan’s airport had previously been identified as a possible hub for drug trafficking. 25 people who had participated in a narcotics distribution ring that had operated there since 2010 was indicted by a grand jury in 2012. In yet another case, 20 more people allegedly smuggled 9 kilos of cocaine on to American Airlines flights leaving Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport.