Man accused of trying to smuggle meth-caked clothing on flight from LAX to Australia

Prosecutors indicted a California man on Tuesday after he allegedly tried to smuggle more than 70 pounds of clothing caked with methamphetamine onto an Australia-bound flight out of the Los Angeles International Airport earlier this month.

Raj Matharu, 31, of Northridge, faces one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of California. Prosecutors accused Matheru of possessing two suitcases that contained more than a dozen clothing items covered in methamphetamine.

Matharu had checked the suitcases, one pink and one gray, on his Nov. 6 United Airlines flight that was traveling from the Los Angeles International Airport to Sydney, Australia, according to court documents obtained by USA TODAY. After Matharu released the two luggages to United Airlines, prosecutors said screening officers who X-rayed the luggage noticed "irregularities."

Screening personnel then pulled the suitcases for a secondary inspection by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers, court documents state.

"Upon opening the suitcases, law enforcement found the suitcases contained more than a dozen white or light-colored clothing items that were dried stiff and covered in a white residue," the U.S. Attorney's Office said in a statement Tuesday.

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Prosecutors said law enforcement field-tested a sample of the white residue, which tested positive for methamphetamine. The total weight of clothing items was about 71.5 pounds and law enforcement later extracted over two pounds of methamphetamine from the suitcases, according to prosecutors.

The methamphetamine-caked clothes consisted of a variety of items ranging from shirts and sweaters to socks and boxers, court documents show. They also included a set of onesie pajamas fashioned to look like a cow. Court documents state that it was likely the clothing was “washed” in methamphetamine and left to dry.

CBP officers intercepted Matharu on a jet bridge as he tried to board his flight, where he admitted to owning the suitcases and was later arrested, according to court documents.

Matharu is free on a $10,000 bond and is scheduled to be arraigned on Monday in U.S. District Court in downtown Los Angeles, prosecutors said. If convicted as charged, he could face a minimum sentence of 10 years in federal prison.

Other recent drug busts

Tuesday's indictment is the latest in numerous drug trafficking cases across the country, in which suspects have been accused of using various ploys to smuggle illicit drugs.

In August, several cases made national headlines, including the seizure of over 2,500 pounds of crystal meth that were concealed among boxes of celery in the cargo area of a truck. The wholesale value of the seizure was approximately $3.2 million, the Drug Enforcement Administration said.

In another incident, CBP officers discovered 1,220 packages that contained 4,587 pounds of methamphetamine worth over $5 million. The packages were disguised to look like watermelons, according to the CBP.

CBP said a 29-year-old man was seeking entry into the U.S. from Mexico and had been selected for a secondary inspection. A watermelon was taken out of the man's truck for further examination, in which officers uncovered the meth-filled packages.

A California man was also arrested in early August and charged with distribution of and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, among other drug charges. Prosecutors alleged that the man was connected to an attempted shipping of over 2,000 pounds of meth that was destined for Australia.

Additionally, six men were charged for being part of a "drug empire" that hid millions of dollars worth of meth and cocaine inside Bluetooth karaoke speakers and smuggled the narcotic-filled devices from California to Pennsylvania, state officials said.

The men were members of the Byrne Drug Trafficking Organization, which shipped around $5 million in drugs over six months, according to Bucks County District Attorney Jennifer Schorn. The organization's members face a slew of drug-related and corrupt organization charges, Schorn said.

Contributing: Gabe Hauari, Jonathan Limehouse and Julia Gomez, USA TODAY

This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Man accused of trying to smuggle meth-caked clothes on LAX flight