Man Smuggled Chocolate-Coated Heroin Into Newark Airport, Pleads Guilty

NEWARK, NJ — The plan was simple, if not strange: smuggle three kilograms of heroin through Newark Airport by coating the narcotics in chocolate. But in the end, it didn’t work out for Guatemalan resident Jacobo Leonel Orellana-Estrada, 21, who pleaded guilty to the crime on Thursday.

Orellana-Estrada, 21, pleaded guilty before a U.S. district judge in Trenton federal court to an information charging him with one count of possession with intent to distribute more than one kilogram of heroin, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office (New Jersey).

According to court documents and statements, Orellana-Estrada arrived at Newark Liberty International Airport on June 11 as a passenger aboard a commercial airline flight from Guatemala City, Guatemala.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers stopped Orellana-Estrada at customs inspection and searched his luggage. In one of his bags, they discovered what appeared to be six, small, single-layer cakes that were actually packages of heroin coated in a thin layer of chocolate and wrapped in paper, authorities said.

The count of possession with intent to distribute more than one kilogram of heroin carries a maximum potential penalty of life in prison, prosecutors said.

Sentencing is scheduled for Jan. 29, 2018.

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While it may seem unusual to try to smuggle heroin inside candy, it’s been attempted before at Newark Airport.

In 2015, Transportation Security Administration inspectors at Newark International Airport discovered a stash of marijuana hidden in “Mary Jane” candy wrappers.

• See related article: 'Mary Jane' Found in Mary Jane Wrappers At Newark Airport

In 2016, authorities arrested a New Jersey man who allegedly tried to smuggle 4.5 pounds of heroin into the airport concealed in packages labeled “Café” and “Nestle Recacao.”

• See related article: N.J. Man Tried To Smuggle 4.5 Pounds Of Heroin Into Newark Airport

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