Agents in Philadelphia stop hundreds of pounds of marijuana on way to Britain

Nov. 6 (UPI) -- A U.S. Customs and Border Protection official in Philadelphia says an "unprecedented" amount of marijuana was recently found in a warehouse outside the city and was destined for Europe.

On Wednesday, CBP said officers on Monday seized a combined total of 170 pounds of marijuana in 35 total parcels at an international shipping facility at a Delaware County warehouse in southeast Pennsylvania.

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Although medical and recreational use of marijuana is being decriminalized in some states, marijuana possession and bulk smuggling "remain illegal under federal law, and so Customs and Border Protection officers will continue to seize it when we encounter it," Cleatus Hunt, CBP's Philadelphia area port director, said Wednesday.

According to the federal government, the payload was getting shipped from California to Britain and had a street value of roughly $800,000.

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"Depending on potency, this haul could fetch two to three times more in London," the border protection agency claimed.

Earlier this year, the Biden DEA moved to ease restrictions on marijuana in order to reclassify it from a Schedule 1 to a low-risk substance by striking to remove its association with deadly drugs such as heroin and LSD in a "historic" move.

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However, under now President-elect Donald Trump, if that intended reclassification of cannabis will happen remains to be seen.

Meanwhile, CBP officers and agents seized last year an average of 2,339 pounds of illicit drugs at air, sea and land ports of entry.

And about two weeks ago, Philadelphia CBP officers had discovered 114 pounds of marijuana concealed inside the luggage of two women attempting to board a flight to London.

But Hunt says this new discovery was "an unprecedented" number of cannabis parcels the Philadelphia Port had seen, adding "they are also parcels that London consumers won't see."

The border agency says CBP officers "usually see" marijuana getting exported in smaller parcels as in this latest seizure, but occasionally officers "encounter travelers carrying marijuana-stuffed suitcases."

But despite federal law forbidding the transport of marijuana across state lines or exporting it from the country, CBP added it has been seeing a continued "trend" of U.S.-based growers, retailers and "criminal organizations" that have been shipping or transporting the plant to Europe and Africa where, according to the agency, "high-quality weed can fetch prices many times higher than in the U.S."