SUGAR-SMACKS BUST

Federal agents at Newark Airport have arrested four people they claim
tried to smuggle $5 million worth of heroin into the country packed in
candy bars.

A total of more than 12 pounds of heroin was found divided into dozens
of pellets placed in more than 100 bars, which were then individually
wrapped and packaged, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said
yesterday.

Customs agents, along with officers of the Drug Enforcement
Administration, found the illegal nougat during a routine inspection
of the luggage of Eddie Palma-Jurado, 22, of Ecuador, after he arrived
from Guayaquil, Ecuador, on Wednesday.

Also arrested were Jorge Avila-Ojeda, 26, a U.S. citizen; Marco
Ponton-Ojeda, 34, of Ecuador; and Pedro Mishquero, 38, of Ecuador. All
were charged with attempting to import more than 12 pounds of heroin.

They were ordered held without bail on Thursday by U.S. Magistrate
Patty Shwartz.

Agents also seized a 2002 BMW X5 in connection with the smuggling
attempt.

"One of the core missions for ICE is to prevent these dangerous and
illegal drugs from entering the United States, which can only bring
harm to our streets and communities," said Kyle Hutchins, special
agent in charge for ICE's Office of Investigations in Newark.

"Successful criminal investigations, like we witnessed in this
operation, will continue to mount as we strengthen our partnerships
with the Drug Enforcement Administration and CBP [Customs and Border
Protection], thus enhancing our ability to identify sophisticated
methods to smuggle narcotics into the United States," he said.

The busts came a few days after customs agents in Buffalo nailed a
Canadian man allegedly trying to smuggle 200 pounds of hydroponic
marijuana into the United States.

The suspect, an Indian citizen with resident status in Canada, showed
border agents paperwork stating he was delivering plastic watering
cans to Colorado.

Border agents, using gamma-ray technology, found the truck was
carrying more than just cans.

They found five boxes not part of the documentation. Inside were 200
vacuum-sealed bags of pot.

The weed is worth about $600,000 on the street, according to
officials.

The driver, 28, turned out to be part of the Free and Secure Trade
program, designed to speed border crossings for companies with
frequent trans-North American business.

Two weeks earlier, DEA agents in Colombia took down a drug-smuggling
ring that had planned to sneak narcotics into the United States in the
stomachs of puppies.