TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) — A woman is facing drug trafficking charges after investigators say she tried to smuggle more than 60 pounds of marijuana through the Tallahassee International Airport.
According to court documents, the Tallahassee Police Department's Narcotics Unit were conducting a narcotics interdiction at the Tallahassee International Airport on July 26. Investigators, along with a K-9 officer, conducted a open air drug sniffs on three pieces of luggage after they were removed from an American Airlines Flight.
Documents say the luggage set off a positive alert for presence of narcotics, so they placed the luggage back on the carousel to be retrieved by it's owner.
Some time after, investigators say they noticed 25-year-old Celeste Dorsey and another man exit a nearby terminal and walk about 20 feet away from each other while heading towards baggage claim.
They say the pair didn't appear to communicate with each other as Dorsey picked up one piece of luggage and the man picked up the other two. While at the baggage claim, officers say the duo appeared to be hyper-vigilant of their surroundings and both constantly were looking around.
After picking up the luggage, the two began to walk towards the nearest exit where they were immediately detained.
Investigators say during questioning, Dorsey claimed that all three pieces of luggage were hers but denied that any of the illegal contraband belonged to her.
"Dorsey indicated if any contraband is inside of her luggage that it was placed inside the luggage by airport personnel," investigators wrote in the arrest report. "Dorsey stated she has not had control of her luggage since leaving the airport in San Francisco, CA."
When the man who was with Dorsey spoke with officers, he stated that he ran into Dorsey at the airport in California and was helping her carry out her luggage.
During the investigation, officers obtained a warrant to search all of Dorsey's luggage.
Investigators say they found 63 individually wrapped bags of cannabis in the suitcases, each bag weighing approximately one pound. They also note that they found more bags of cannabis inside of the pant legs of clothing which were also folded and wrapped within a vacuum sealed bag.
Based on the evidence, Dorsey was transported to the Leon County Detention Facility and being charged for trafficking marijuana and possession of paraphernalia. She has since been released from jail on a $15,500 bond.
