Feds arrest Delta baggage handlers in drug smuggling probe at Metro Airport

Federal agents toppled two drug-smuggling rings Thursday run by baggage handlers who allegedly imported marijuana and cocaine from Jamaica and Houston while working at Detroit Metro Airport.
Twelve people — including 10 Delta baggage handlers — were arrested early Thursday in an investigation dubbed "Operation Excess Baggage" and accused of exploiting weaknesses at several airports to run drug-smuggling pipelines since at least 2009.Complaints filed in federal court in Detroit describe intricate drug-smuggling rings that used crude tactics, an exotic locale and employee access to bypass security and transport hundreds of pounds of illegal drugs to Detroit's streets.
Nine people were arrested in Metro Detroit and made initial appearances in U.S. District Court in Detroit. They were ordered held until at least today. Two other suspects live in Texas and one in California.
The arrests follow an investigation that lasted more than a year led by investigators from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
"For those on the inside thinking about abusing their access to planes for money, think again," ICE director John Morton said. "We are watching. We are looking."
The defendants are accused of drug trafficking and facing charges that include conspiracy, possession with intent to distribute and illegal importation of narcotics.
Possible penalties vary by drug amounts. If convicted, the defendants face from five years to life in prison and up to a $10 million fine.
Delta suspended the baggage handlers without pay while the case is pending, said Susan Elliott, an airline spokeswoman.
"Delta does not tolerate employees found using their position for illegal activity," she said.
One drug-smuggling pipeline ran from Jamaica to Detroit; the second from Houston to Detroit. Both operated simultaneously, but were unrelated and involved different people, according to federal investigators.
The two pipelines used similar methods and exploited airport vulnerabilities, they added.
The Jamaica case dates to January 2010 when a federal agent there contacted another agent in Detroit about the seizure of about 53 pounds of marijuana stashed inside a suitcase bound for Detroit.
Federal agents let the plane depart for Detroit. When it landed, investigators searched all the luggage immediately and found approximately 35 pounds of cocaine and almost 284 pounds of marijuana, according to court records.The Jamaica case relied on several handlers in Detroit who were born in Jamaica.
The handlers used crude methods to identify drug-filled suitcases, according to court records. The luggage was marked with a red X, had white and black bags wrapped around the handles or zip ties.
Glenford Stephens, a Jamaican-born naturalized U.S. citizen working at Detroit Metro Airport, is accused of coordinating shipments into Detroit, according to court records. He reportedly paid fellow baggage handlers to remove luggage from the belly of jets landing in Detroit.
The bags, according to the records, were placed on domestic conveyer belts instead of international baggage belts to avoid detection.
Stephens, who lives in Lathrup Village, or others would then remove the bags and place them in vehicles, according to the court records.
Around the same time, investigators found that a different group of baggage handlers were transporting drugs from Houston.