SAN DIEGO (KGTV) – A shipment from Mexico containing over 200 non-FDA approved COVID-19 test kits was seized at San Diego International Airport, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials announced Wednesday.
CBP officials said the shipment of two packages arrived at the airport on Dec. 1 from a flight out of Mexico. In a news release, officials said the shipment was manifested as “plastic card” and then taken for inspection.
Officers found 251 COVID-19 test kits inside the packages, and they were then evaluated by FDA officials.
An inspection by the FDA found the kits were misbranded, and the shipment “did not have an FDA Emergency Use Authorization and violated the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act.”
The kits, with a domestic value of $5,000, were seized by CBP officers, with Homeland Security notified of the shipment.
CBP San Diego Director of Field Operations Anne Maricich said, “I am proud of how vigilant our officers are when it comes to protecting our communities, they stopped the entry of unauthorized, unproven and potentially unsafe goods into the United States. This is a perfect example of the great investigative work by our officers to protect our country from goods that could do us harm.”
