Crime & Safety
Prison Guards Uncover $18M in Cocaine Hidden In Banana Shipment
A routine pick up of 45 boxes of ripe bananas led to the discovery of 540 packages of cocaine by two detention officers on Friday.
FREEPORT, TX — Two Texas Department of Corrections Officers who were picking up 45 boxes of donated bananas uncovered a shipment of cocaine worth nearly $18 million.
The detention sergeants were picking up the boxes of ripe bananas for the Wayne Scott Unit in Angleton when one of the sergeants noticed a white powdery substance inside one of the boxes, officials said.
Customs officials field tested the powdery substance, which tested positive for cocaine. Officials said customs inspectors uncovered 540 packages of cocaine hidden in bundles in two pallets of bananas.
Find out what's happening in Clear Lakefor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Investigators said the cocaine had a street value of $17.8 million. Officials said the other 44 boxes only contained ripe bananas.
U.S. Customs and the Drug Enforcement Administration are investigating.
Find out what's happening in Clear Lakefor free with the latest updates from Patch.
(For more news and information like this, subscribe to Patch for free. If you have an iPhone, click here to get the free Patch iPhone app; download the free Patch Android app here.)
Image: Texas Department of Criminal Justice
Send your news tips and story ideas to bryan.kirk@patch.com
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.