Officials: Woman Busted for Smuggling $300,000 of Heroin in ‘Chicken’ Packages

Authorities foiled a 61-year-old woman’s plan to smuggle $300,000 of heroin in packages disguised as roasted chickens upon her arrival at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City, officials announced Wednesday.

Authorities took Emma Soriano—a U.S. citizen from Passaic, New Jersey—into custody after U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials discovered the concealed drugs during a baggage inspection on Friday, NBC New York reported.

Soriano arrived in New York on a flight from Mexico City before CBP officials pulled her over for inspection, suspecting “fowl” play.

Officials inspected her belongings and found the 9.7 pounds of heroin inside the foil-wrapped packages, which contained an estimated $300,000 worth of heroin, customs officials told NJ.com.

The woman faces federal narcotics smuggling charges, and her case is now in the hands of Homeland Security Investigations. Soriano’s case will go before the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of New York for prosecution. It is unclear whether Soriano has an attorney.

CBP officials have seized large amounts of narcotics such as heroin in other drug busts. In September 2016, CBP officers seized nearly $2 million of narcotics and other drugs being smuggled into Texas across the U.S. border from Mexico.