(AP) — Authorities say federal officers are regularly finding cocaine and heroin concealed in shipments of flowers moving through Miami International Airport. Officials with U.S. Customs and Border Protection say 80 pounds of the drugs have been found at the airport over the past two years, and most of the shipments are from Colombia and Ecuador.
Officials say the cocaine and heroin has been hidden in the flowers themselves and in the boxes containing them. Miami is one of the nation’s busiest locations for shipments of flowers into the U.S. Inspectors try to prevent foreign insects and pests from getting into the country.
The border protection agency says it works closely with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to investigate the drug trafficking organizations responsible for the drug-laden flower shipments.