26-02-2025
Former customs agent convicted of smuggling 16 kilos of cocaine to Atlanta airport
A 45-year-old former customs agent is out of a job after he was convicted of carrying more than just clothes in his carry-on bags.
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According to court documents, on Jan. 10, 2020, Van Beverhoudt, a former U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer boarded his commercial flight from St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands to Atlanta with 16 bricks of cocaine in two carry-on bags.
Officials said Beverhoudt traveled in full uniform with his loaded CBP-issued gun, to avoid the TSA screening.
The scheme was foiled after Beverhoudt's flight arrived at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport to head to his final destination, Baltimore, MD, and a K-9 sniffed out the drugs, officials said.
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After a five-day trial, Beverhoudt, 45, of St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands was convicted of conspiracy to import cocaine into the United States, importation of cocaine into the United States, conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine, and possession with intent to distribute cocaine.
'Van Beverhoudt used his trusted position as a U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer to circumvent the law and smuggle dangerous drugs into our community,' said Acting U.S. Attorney Richard S. Moultrie, Jr. 'Thanks to the diligent efforts of our law enforcement partners, Van Beverhoudt is now being held accountable and faces time in federal prison.'
The court will consider the US sentencing guidelines, which are not binding but provide sentencing ranges for most offenders.
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