The Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA) has launched an internal investigation into the smuggling of 70 live finches inside hair rollers from Guyana into the US, Chief Executive Officer of the airport Ramesh Ghir said.
Speaking to Stabroek News yesterday, Ghir said he was made aware of the smuggling through the media and he is currently awaiting information.
He noted that an internal investigation is underway to determine what transpired and to ascertain how the passenger was able to pass through security and customs to board the flight.
“We do not want to preempt anything right now, we still have to get an understanding (on) what happened,” he stated. According to Ghir, they will also have to determine what protocols were breached.
The New York Post reported on Wednesday that Federal authorities busted a Guyanese man at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York over the weekend when he tried to enter to the country with the birds. The man, who was not named, had just arrived at the Queens airport on a flight from Georgetown on Saturday when US Customs and Border Protection agriculture specialists stopped him.
During the course of inspection, the specialists discovered 70 finches concealed in orange hair rollers inside a black duffel bag. The traveler was not admitted to the US and was instead returned to Guyana, a Customs and Border Protection spokesman said.
The report said that the birds were turned over to the United States Department of Agriculture Veterinary Services.
