By AP
DETROIT –
Federal authorities say baggage handlers working for Delta Air Lines conspired to smuggle drugs to Detroit from airports in Houston and Jamaica.
Criminal complaints were unsealed Thursday in Detroit against 12 people, including 10 former or current baggage handlers. Court filings describe a conspiracy in which cocaine and marijuana were shipped via planes to Detroit Metropolitan Airport.
Authorities say the bags were marked with a red "X" or had plastic bags or plastic ties on the handle. The investigation began in early 2010 in Jamaica when 53 pounds of marijuana was discovered in a suitcase bound for Detroit.
When the plane landed in Detroit, authorities seized five suitcases with 284 pounds of marijuana and 35 pounds of cocaine.
Delta says the employees have been suspended without pay.