Philadelphia CBP intercepts another 72 pounds of dangerous Ketamine destined to South Florida

PHILADELPHIA – U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers seized nearly 73 more pounds of dangerous ketamine in Philadelphia recently that was being shipped in express delivery parcels from Europe to South Florida.

Last month, CBP officers in Philadelphia seized five shipments containing a total of 57 pounds of ketamine hydrochloride. Ketamine is an animal anesthetic dangerously abused by users, and by sexual predators on their victims.

In these most recent cases, CBP officers seized a little more than 46 pounds in a shipment from France on July 5 that was manifested as “industrial air filter HEPA air filter,” and officers seized 26 pounds, 11 ounces in a shipment from Germany on July 9 that was manifested as “Mercedes E class headlight right W2.” Both shipments were destined to addresses in Broward County, Florida.

In each shipment, CBP officers discovered a white, crystalline substance concealed inside other packaging. Officers tested the substance using a handheld elemental isotope analysis tool and identified the substance as ketamine hydrochloride.

Collectively, the ketamine weighed 72 pounds, 13 ounces and had a street value of about $1.8 million.

An investigation continues.

“Ketamine is a very dangerous anesthetic that can seriously harm abusers and unsuspecting victims, and so it’s an illicit drug that Customs and Border Protection officers take immense pleasure at intercepting before it can reach our communities,” said Cleatus P. Hunt, Jr., Area Port Director for CBP’s Area Port of Philadelphia. “CBP remains committed to combatting drug trafficking organizations by seizing their poisonous shipments at our nation’s ports of entry.”

According to the DEA, ketamine hydrochloride is a Schedule III non-narcotic compound regulated under the Controlled Substances Act. It is commonly known on the street as Special K, Donkey Dust, and Cat Killer, and is smoked, snorted, or mixed in beverages.

It is used lawfully in both human and veterinary medicine to induce sedation, immobility, and relief from pain. Unprescribed, ketamine is abused by users for its ability to induce dissociative sensations and hallucinations like that induced by phencyclidine (PCP).

Ketamine is often cut or combined with other dangerous compounds, such as ecstasy, and it is often associated with raves and dance clubs. Overdoses can lead to serious health threats, such as nausea, elevated heart rate, unconsciousness, convulsions, and respiratory failure.

Additionally, ketamine has been used by sexual predators to incapacitate their victims during sexual assaults.

CBP officers and agents seized an average of 1,571 pounds of drugs, including 78 pounds of fentanyl, every day at our nation’s air, sea, and land ports of entry. See what else CBP accomplished during "A Typical Day" in 2024, and view CBP enforcement stats and summaries.

CBP's border security mission is led at our nation’s Ports of Entry by CBP officers and agriculture specialists from the Office of Field Operations. CBP screens international travelers and cargo and searches for illicit narcotics, unreported currency, weapons, counterfeit consumer goods, prohibited agriculture, invasive weeds and pests, and other illicit products that could potentially harm the American public, U.S. businesses, and our nation’s safety and economic vitality.

Learn more at www.CBP.gov.

Follow the Director of CBP’s Baltimore Field Office on Twitter at @DFOBaltimore for breaking news, current events, human interest stories and photos, and CBP’s Office of Field Operations on Instagram at @cbpfieldops.