October 7, 09

NEWS / CBP K9 Sniffs Out Heroin Mule at Dulles Intl Airport

Sterling, Va. – A Customs and Border Protection K-9 quickly ended an alleged heroin smuggling attempt at Dulles International Airport on Sunday.


CBP K-9 Rex alerted to the legs of Anna Sprauve, 22, who arrived at Dulles at nearly 2 a.m. aboard a flight that originated in Ecuador. A subsequent search revealed single packets taped to each of Sprauve’s legs, and four additional packets inside her backpack.

The six packets of heroin weighed 617.8 grams, or about 1.4 pounds, and has an estimated street value of about $44,000.


“This was a brazen attempt to smuggle dangerous narcotics into the United States, but one that ultimately failed because of our highly trained narcotics detector canine Rex,” said Christopher Hess, CBP port director in Washington. “This seizure significantly illustrates CBP officers’ vigilance to detect bad actors, and to stem the flow of illegal narcotics from reaching our nation’s streets.”


Sprauve was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.


The last narcotics carrier arrested at Dulles International Airport was Hector Anibal Lopez Ardon on May 8, 2009, who allegedly possessed 1,209 grams, or about 2.7 pounds, of cocaine with an estimated street value of $85,000. CBP officers discovered two bricks of cocaine that Lopez Ardon allegedly hid in his trousers, and discovered additional cocaine packets inside a bowl of cheese.

http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/newsroom/news_releases/10062009_2.xml