ST. THOMAS — A man was arrested on Monday after Customs and Border Protection officials reported finding marijuana in his luggage.
According to court documents, Bryan Smith arrived at the Cyril E. King airport on Monday afternoon on an inbound flight from Miami, Florida. According to standard procedure, CBP officials x-rayed checked luggage coming off the American Airlines flight, reportedly finding an “anomaly” within a bag bearing Mr. Smith's name.
CBP officers put the bag onto the baggage claim carousel and waited for Smith to retrieve it. They then stopped him and escorted him to a secondary screening area for further inspection.
A search of the bag yielded two vacuum sealed bags which contained a green leafy substance. The substance returned a positive result for marijuana when tested on site. A total of 995.7 grams of the substance was recovered from Smith's bag, along with a partially-smoked marijuana joint from his carry-on bag. The 34-year old was subsequently arrested and charged with possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute, and possession of marijuana. He was remanded into custody after being unable to pay the initial bail requirement of $7,500.
In court on Tuesday, Magistrate Paula Norkaitis found probable cause to uphold both charges and maintained bail at the full amount. If Smith is able to pay the required sum, he will be restricted to the district of St. Thomas and St. John, and required to report to the probation office each week by telephone. Smith will be required to surrender his passport and Minnesota identification card, and is banned from using alcohol or any other controlled substance, or possessing a firearm, ammunition, or any other dangerous weapon.
His next court appearance is scheduled for October 3.
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