Investigators: Man swallows heroin at airport

HOUSTON – A man has been accused of swallowing heroin pellets at George Bush Intercontinental Airport.

According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Bryan Mukama Hans, 30, of Tanzania, arrived at the airport on a Qatar Airways flight on June 3.

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Hans applied for admission to the U.S. with a B1/B2 tourism visa, officials said. His flight itinerary indicated that he was going to leave the U.S. for Tanzania on June 18, investigators said.

Hans told Customs and Border Protection officers that he was in the country for a family reunion in Utah, but his flight itinerary did not indicate that, investigators said. Officers said they checked travel reservations records and did not find any Hans booked on any flights to Utah. Investigators did some more checking and discovered that there was a reunion scheduled, but it was set for two weeks after Hans was supposed to leave the country.

Hans agreed to have an X-ray of his abdomen taken, officials said. He was taken to Northwest Medical Center. Shortly after an exam, Hans passed about 22 plastic-wrapped pellets, investigators said.

Detectives said one of the pellets was tested, and it contained heroin.

Hans was kept in the hospital until all of the pellets were passed out of his digestive tract, officials said.

Investigators said Hans ingested more than 100 pellets that contained more than one kilogram of heroin.

Hans has been accused of knowingly and intentionally possessing heroin with intent to distribute.