A Customs and Border Protection agriculture detector helped discover nearly 100 pounds of prohibited meat, plants and wildlife products inside luggage arriving from Thailand after alerting officers to the suitcase, authorities said.
CBP said K9 Maisy alerted officers to the bag, which contained 50 pounds of meat, including raw meat, 33 pounds of mangoes, garlic, bamboo, banana plants and approximately 16 pounds of Bengal monitor lizard. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service took custody of the monitor lizard.
“If you discovered all this in a suitcase, wouldn’t you be this happy?” CBP wrote alongside a photo of Maisy posing behind the unusual haul.
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CBP agriculture specialists routinely inspect international luggage for prohibited meat, plants and wildlife products that can introduce pests, animal diseases or invasive species into the United States.
In a separate case, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife said officers working with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration inspected a vehicle at the San Ysidro Port of Entry and found approximately 436 fish, including rockfish, lingcod, sheephead and yellowtail.
CDFW said the three people in the vehicle did not have valid Mexican fishing licenses and that officers determined they were bringing the fish into the United States to sell.
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The agency said the catch was seized as evidence and charges are being pursued in connection with the alleged unlawful take of fish in Mexico, fishing without valid licenses and illegally importing the fish into the United States.
