Alabama man arrived to MIA from Colombia with nearly 3,000 pain pills, detectives say
An Alabama man is facing drug trafficking charges after U.S. Customs agents found thousands of pain pills in his luggage when he landed at Miami International Airport from Colombia on Saturday morning, detectives say.
After arriving on the American Airlines flight from Medellin, Customs agents asked Chip Ervin, 46, if they could conduct a second inspection of his bag. Agents found several bottles of pills that tested positive for hydrocodone, per an arrest report from the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office.
The sheriff’s office’s Narcotics Interdiction Squad then took over the case from Customs. In all, agents and detectives found 2,997 pills in Ervin’s luggage, according to the arrest report.
Detectives said he told agents that he traveled to Medellin for dental work.
Ervin, from Fayette, Alabama, was booked into Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center on a charge of hydrocodone trafficking. He remained in jail on Monday, with bond yet to be set by a judge, according to court records.
