John Jefferson
Officers at Los Angeles International Airport arrested a man after he allegedly tried to smuggle meth-baked clothing, including a cow pajama onesie, in his luggage (Department of Homeland Security).
Officers at Los Angeles International Airport made an udder-ly startling discovery in a man’s checked luggage on a flight bound for Australia.
Raj Matharu, 31, of Northridge, California, was traveling on United Airlines Flight 839 from LAX to Sydney on Nov. 6 and checked pink and gray suitcases before heading to the gate, a criminal complaint said. Screening officers with U.S. Customs and Border Protection sent the luggage through a X-ray machine which allegedly revealed an “anomaly.”
Officers opened the suitcases that had Matharu’s name on them and found they were filled with “white or light-colored clothing items that were dried stiff and covered in a white residue,” cops wrote.
One of the clothing items was an adult-sized cow pajama onesie. Other items included both men’s and women’s clothing such as socks, sports bras and boxers, the affidavit said.
The residue reportedly tested positive for methamphetamine.
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CBP approached Matharu at the gate and took him in for an interview. He allegedly admitted the suitcases belonged to him but requested a lawyer and declined to speak further.
Officers believe Matharu “washed” a meth solution into the clothing and then left it to dry in room temperature or cold environment. Over time, the solution would evaporate and the powdered meth would separate from the shirt to form the white residue.
In Matharu’s bags, there were about 71 pounds worth of meth-caked clothing, per the complaint. Cops reportedly extracted about one kilogram worth of the drug.
Matharu is charged with one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. He has since posted a $10,000 bond and is scheduled to be arraigned on Dec. 2.
“Drug dealers are continually inventing creative ways of smuggling dangerous narcotics in pursuit of illicit profit – as alleged in the facts of this case,” Martin Estrada, U.S. Attorney for California’s Central District said in a statement. “In the process, they are poisoning communities throughout the world. Law enforcement is committed to fighting drug trafficking, knowing that every seizure saves lives.”
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