Originally published at: More than 10,000 Fentanyl pills in candy boxes seized at Los Angeles International Airport | Boing Boing
…
“Yay, Sweet Tarts!”
If I were more conspiracy-minded, I’d say it was a little too on-the-nose.
“Were you trying to get caught?”
I’ll tell my neighbors to be on the look out for that ONE HOUSE that gives out whole large boxes of Skittles…
If it was caught by TSA and not by customs, what OUTBOUND flight was the smuggler trying to board?
(I would have expected US Customs to be involved if it was an INBOUND passenger.)
Unfortunately, this is chum in the water for the conspiracy minded moral panic folks. I can already hear the breathless Fox News reports saying this is proof they are coming for the trick or treaters.
Might have been in checked luggage as the passenger was changing flights, perhaps? I got nuthin else otherwise…
Yeah this seems to be the simplest answer. Or a cartel with a sense of humor/wanting to watch the world burn
Given the gross ineptitude of most TSA agents, we have to assume this person was previously identified by investigators and already under surveillance prior to going through the security checkpoint.
Either that or the suspect was dressed like a frail old woman in a wheelchair or wore a turban which pretty much guarantees extra scrutiny.
As a friend of mine said “why would you give away drugs you could be selling, particularly to kids who A.) don’t have a lot of money to spend if they get hooked, and who B.) could likely overdose and bring the police down on you?”
If the TSA or DEA catches someone importing cocaine hidden in walking canes we don’t assume it’s a ploy to get senior citizens hooked.
Just in time for the annual Halloween candy scare tactics, but in this case it looks like a good idea to keep that shit off the streets.
The announcement by the LA County Sheriff says “suspected Fentanyl,” which tells me they haven’t tested this yet to verify that they are, in fact, Fentanyl. The whole story doesn’t make a ton of sense. As others pointed out, they were trying to smuggle these out of LA? Through a heavily screened TSA checkpoint in one of the biggest, busiest airports in the country. And then, in an airport full of security, police, and sheriff’s deputies, the suspect manages to get away. But they know their identity. I’m not conspiracy minded either, but holy crap, none of this story passes the smell test. Add in the fact that the LA Sheriff’s department has been under some scrutiny lately, and it seems like a lot.
Look at that whoppers box: there’s easily 1000 pills in that one box. Nobody is giving that out to a trick or treater: this was obviously just an attempt to get drugs from point A to point B.
Since it was TSA and not Customs, this appears to be a trip from L.A. to somewhere else in the U.S… Given that air travel is easily the riskiest means of moving pills compared to just driving, this displays either an EPIC level of stupidity, or a really really serious distant deadline to meet on behalf of scary people who, most likely, weren’t actually at the airport.
Fortunately, if in boxes of Whoppers, it won’t be accidentally ingested by anyone under 55…
Well, the easy answer is to ban Halloween
Some of us have weird kids who enjoy some low-listed candies like Whoppers, bit-o-honey and candy corn.
I would guess the moral panickers are going to get the cause and effect backward on this one: dollars to donuts, the reason the fentanyl is in candy boxes is because of the uncritical reporting about rainbow fentanyl, and not that the reporting exists because fentanyl is coming in candy boxes.
“Images of pill-like objects in candy boxes were provided to the press by law enforcement.”
FIFY
… instantly turning everybody who celebrates it into outlaw rebel heroes sticking it to the Man