California Woman Caught Smuggling $1 Million Worth of Crack Cocaine Hidden in Parmesan Wheel at Heathrow

Jamie Choi, 23, of California, was sentenced to more than five years in jail on smuggling charges in the United Kingdom

A California woman has been sentenced to more than five years in prison after attempting to smuggle over $1 million worth of crack cocaine into the United Kingdom concealed inside a large wheel of Parmesan cheese.

Jamie Choi, 23, drew the attention of UK Border Force officers when she arrived at Heathrow Airport on May 25 on a flight from Brazil carrying a 17-pound wheel of Peruvian Parmesan cheese. Officers discovered that the wheel contained 94% pure crack cocaine hidden inside. The illicit drugs had an estimated street value exceeding $1 million.

Choi was toting around a 17-pound cheese wheel that contained 94% pure crack cocaine

Authorities said Choi had traveled from Los Angeles to Lima, Peru, then to Asuncion, Paraguay, and finally to São Paulo, Brazil, before boarding her flight to London. During the inspection, officials found a notebook in her luggage containing a single handwritten entry dated May 21, which read, “I dropped out of [University of California Santa Barbara] on Monday. Currently I am in Paraguay in South America solo travelling for the first time. It’s been amazing so far.”

Investigators said the case highlights the increasingly creative methods smugglers use in attempts to evade detection. “We’ve seen people trying to smuggle cocaine into the UK hidden inside all manner of innocuous-looking items, but Border Force and the National Crime Agency are well-practised in finding drugs, whatever the disguise,” said National Crime Agency senior officer Barry Vinall.

Choi pleaded guilty on August 6 to charges of importing Class A drugs. She was sentenced to five years and three months in prison.