Overview
- CBP agriculture specialists at O’Hare, which intercepted two prohibited shipments on April 11, seized a monkey carcass and 125 pounds of ruminant meat.
- Officers flagged a Cameroonian traveler's bag after an X-ray showed an anomaly, then found a monkey’s remains that were seized and destroyed for health reasons.
- In a separate inspection of a traveler from Liberia, agents opened eight boxes of dried seafood and uncovered meat, bones, and hair that the traveler admitted were beef.
- Agents also took one pound of fresh leaves and four types of prohibited seeds intended for planting from the same luggage.
- Officials say ruminant meat from some regions is barred because it can spread diseases such as mad cow and foot-and-mouth, and CBP reported no charges or identities while urging travelers to declare agricultural items.