PHILADELPHIA, Penn. — U.S. Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) officers in Philadelphia has intercepted six separate ketamine smuggling attempts in Philadelphia, most recently on Dec. 11, that shipped from Europe to addresses in the United States, according to a press release issued on Monday.
CBP defined Ketamine hydrochloride as a Schedule III non-narcotic compound regulated under the Controlled Substances Act.
“It is a dangerous anesthetic commonly known on the street as “Special K,” “Donkey Dust,” and “Cat Killer,” and is smoked, snorted, or mixed in beverages, or cut with other dangerous drugs,” the release said. “Overdoses can lead to serious health threats, such as nausea, elevated heart rate, unconsciousness, convulsions, and respiratory failure.”
Ketamine is used legally by medical professionals to treat human and animal patients.
“However, ketamine is used illegally by street addicts and recreational users as a hallucinogen, similar to phencyclidine (PCP),” CBP stated. “Sexual predators also use ketamine to incapacitate their victims.”
Each of the six shipments, which arrived between Sept. 23 through Dec. 11, were manifested as something different. Four shipments arrived from the United Kingdom, one from France, and one from The Netherlands. Four shipments were destined for Florida and two to Connecticut.
CBP officers inspected the shipments and discovered a white, crystalline substance concealed inside objects such as a punching bag base, plastic cleaning solvent bottles, plastic shell cases, and vacuum-sealed bags.
Officers did not extract the ketamine from the punching bag bases due to officer safety concerns. The six ketamine shipments and concealment objects weighed a combined 160 pounds.
“Customs and Border Protection officers vigilantly safeguard our communities from the scourge of dangerous drugs, such as this ketamine, which has been used by sexual predators to assault victims,” said Cleatus P. Hunt, Jr., Area Port Director for CBP’s Area Port of Philadelphia. “CBP officers remain committed to disrupting drug smuggling attempts and working with our law enforcement partners to hold drug trafficking organizations accountable.”
From late-June through September, Philadelphia CBP says its officers seized 57 pounds of ketamine and another 72 pounds of Ketamine, all destined to South Florida, and three smaller parcels of ketamine destined to addresses in Seattle, Las Vegas, and Wayne, Michigan.
CBP officers and agents seized an average of 1,571 pounds of drugs, including 78 pounds of fentanyl, every day at various points of entry, the release stated.
Bruce Guthrie is an award-winning journalist who has lived in three states including Arkansas, Missouri and Georgia. During his nearly 20-year career, Bruce has served as managing editor and sports editor for numerous publications. He and his wife, Dana, who is also a journalist, are based in Carrollton, Georgia.
