US Border agents discovered 413 pounds of cannabis this past weekend in a shipment of dehumidifiers that was being sent from Canada, through the US, to Great Britain.

US Customs and Border Protection agents discovered the large shipment of cannabis at the port of Cincinnati on September 17. A Narcotic Detector Dog alerted officials to the presence of numerous vacuum-sealed bags of cannabis hidden inside 12 dehumidifiers that were arriving from Ontario, Canada.

“Our canine teams are an invaluable asset to the CBP enforcement strategy,” says LaFonda D. Sutton-Burke, Director, Field Operations-Chicago Field Office. “These interdictions are a testament to the hard work, dedication and training these teams employ on a daily basis protecting America.”

US officials say the cannabis had “an approximate street value of $1.10 million”, or a little under $6 a gram. 

Such large seizures entering the US from Canada are not uncommon. 

More than 13,000 pounds (~6,000 kg) of cannabis have already been seized at the US/Canada border in this past fiscal year (October-March), compared to nearly 80,000 pounds (~36,000 kg) in 2021 and over 54,000 (~24,000 kg) in 2020. In 2019, less than 8,000 pounds (~4,000 kg)  were seized.