$700,000 of cocaine found in Jamaican beef patties

By Oscar Rousseau

- Last updated on GMT

Cocaine smuggler used Jamaica's famous beef patties as drug stash disguise
Cocaine smuggler used Jamaica's famous beef patties as drug stash disguise

Related tags Beef

A Jamaican woman faces drug charges after US authorities busted an attempt to smuggle $700,000 worth of cocaine into New York concealed in a box of Jamaican beef patties.

Chantal Alecia Bedward is alleged to have carried 12 duct-taped packages of cocaine from Kingston, Jamaica​, to John F. Kennedy International Airport, New York.

During a routine inspection, US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents discovered a box of Tastee Brand Jamaican Beef Patties in Ms Bedward’s luggage when she arrived at JFK Airport on Tuesday 17 January.

CBP agents found four pounds of cocaine with a street value of $700,000 inside the box of flaky meat patties. 

Jail time possible

The white powder subsequently tested positive for cocaine.

Ms Bedward has now been arrested for possession of cocaine and has been turned over to Homeland Security Investigation. She faces federal narcotics smuggling charges and will be prosecuted at the US Attorney’s Office in the US Eastern District Court of New York.

Under US law, a first time offender caught smuggling between 500 - 4,999 grams of cocaine can be sentenced to between five and forty years imprisonment.

It is unknown if Ms Bedward has previous convictions.

This seizure demonstrates the vigilance and dedication demonstrated daily by CBP officers at JFK, in keeping these prohibited and dangerous narcotics off the streets of our communities,​” said Robert Perez, director of field operations in New York for CBP.

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