More criminals are trying to smuggle drugs into the United States through JFK Airport, Customs and Border Protection officials say.
Annual arrests for smuggling at the airport rose 19.8 percent, from 274 in 2008 to 326 in 2011, said Immigration and Customs Enforcement Special Agent James Hayes Jr., who oversees the agency’s New York office.
Hayes said that although his agents have better technology and training, he believes the arrest increase is due to “an increase in the amount of individuals attempting to skirt the laws of the United States.”
Arrests have steadily increased, but actual drug seizures have fluctuated.
The feds grabbed 1,096 pounds of cocaine and 732 pounds of heroin in 2011. The cocaine seizure was down by 171 pounds from 2010, while the heroin seizure was up by 111 pounds.
Hayes said the discrepancy is the result of drug rings varying their game — different couriers try to get into the country with different amounts of drugs.
Kennedy’s customs agents are adopting sophisticated X-ray technology to search planes and their cargos, espcially if they’ve followed routes favored by smugglers.
Some of their methods are seen on a new National Geographic Channel series, “To Catch a Smuggler,” which premieres tonight at 9.