Dulles CBP Arrests New Yorker on Heroin Charges

Less than two weeks after arresting an alleged Nigerian heroin smuggler at Washington Dulles International Airport, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers arrested a New York man returning from Nigeria on heroin smuggling allegations last Thursday.

According to court documents, CBP officers referred Michael Babatunde Ayodele, 19, from Queens, N.Y., for a secondary inspection after he arrived Jan. 16 aboard a flight from Nigeria via Kenya and Zurich, Switzerland.

During his secondary inspection, CBP officers detected inconsistencies in his story about allegedly visiting family in Nigeria. Ayodele requested to use the restroom during this inspection, and reportedly passed 55 thumb-sized pellets that field-tested positive for heroin.

CBP officers then transported Ayodele to a local hospital where Ayodele passed an additional 31 pellets, which also field-tested positive for heroin.

According to a press release, the 86 pellets had a combined weight of 1,089 grams, or more than 2 pounds, 6 ounces, and an approximate street value of about $78,000.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia is prosecuting Ayodele. 

This arrest came just 13 days after they arrested Nigerian Adekunle Titus Adetokunbo, 61, for attempting to smuggle 446 grams, or nearly 16 ounces of heroin from Nigeria via Ghana Jan. 6.

“These continuing heroin smuggling attempts from Africa raise serious concern for Customs and Border Protection officers,” said Christopher Hess, CBP Port Director for the Port of Washington, D.C. “We’re hopeful that these arrests send a strong signal that CBP officers are proving successful at detecting internal concealment methods, and that we’re serious about intercepting this deadly poison before it can reach our communities.”

CBP officers turned Ayodele and the suspected heroin over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agents. ICE HSI agents are continuing their investigation.