Man's Gut Busted at Dulles

More than 3 lbs. of heroin found in man’s stomach

Customs officers at Dulles International made a big drug bust Friday, but the narcotics were not found in a suitcase or hidden in souvenirs.  A haul of over three pounds of heroin was found in a passenger’s stomach.

Agents arrested 54-year-old Nigerian Rasheed Martins Friday after they discovered the ingested heroin.  According to court documents, Customs officers detected something was wrong while interviewing Martins.  They then performed an x-ray scan and discovered 97 thumb-sized pellets inside the man's belly.

Agents had to wait until late Friday night for Martins to pass all of the pellets through his system. When finally weighed, the pellets were a combined three pounds, two ounces and carry an approximate street value of $100,000.

Martins is being held by Immigration and Customs Enforcement. This is the third time in just three months that a Nigerian has been arrested at Dulles with heroin ingested. Two men were arrested a week apart in late March and early April after the men expelled 188 combined pellets of heroin. That’s almost eight pounds of the narcotic with a street value near $250,000.

But for Dulles Customs officers, 3 pounds of heroin is pretty tame.  Last month, an Ethiopian man tried to enter the country with 6 bags of sheep meat.  Check out our gallery for some of the more memorable finds.

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