British man busted with $4m worth of ketamine at Detroit airport

The man claimed a family member handed him the two large suitcases to carry

A British man was caught allegedly smuggling $4m worth of the drug ketamine through Detroit Metropolitan Airport, in suitcases which he claimed belonged to a family member.

The man was carrying 110 pounds of ketamine in travel bags, which was found after he was selected for a secondary inspection, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Office said on Wednesday.

The man touched down in Detroit on 13 December after flying to the US from France.

Large white crystals were found by an x-ray scan and a physical search of two large suitcases, which the man insisted to authorities were given to him by a family member.

He told the officers he was on his way to New Jersey to stay with his girlfriend for five days.

The drugs estimated to be worth $4m (US Customs and Border Protection)

"The fact that he had two large suitcases appeared excessive for the relatively short duration of his stay," a CBP spokesman told the Detroit Free Press.

Field tests found that the substance in the bags was ketamine, and the size of the load had a suspected street value of $4m.

CBP officers seized the ketamine and refused admission to the traveller into the country, sending him back to France.

It is unclear if the man was subject to charges in either country.

CBP officers seize an average of 2,895 pounds of dangerous drugs every day within air and sea ports.

Ketamine is a drug that is often used for short-term medical reasons, such as sedation or anaesthesia, but it is often abused for its dissociative sensations and hallucinations, the CBP said.