SAN FRANCISCO: Two security screeners at San Francisco International Airport were charged with allowing methamphetamine to be smuggled through carry-on luggage at a checkpoint in exchange for money, authorities said Friday.
A federal complaint unsealed Friday names Claudio Rene Sunux, 30, of San Francisco, and Amanda Lopez, 27, of South San Francisco, who were security screeners contracted with the Transportation Security Administration, along with the alleged drug smuggler, 28-year-old Anibal Giovanni Ramirez of San Francisco.
In exchange for an offer of money by Ramirez, Sunux and Lopez agreed to allow methamphetamine to be smuggled in carry-on luggage through the security checkpoint at SFO, authorities said. The three planned the operation in part through messages on Facebook, authorities said.
All three were charged with conspiring to distribute methamphetamine. The screeners were also charged with agreeing to receive a bribe, and Ramirez was charged with offering to bribe a public official. All are in federal custody and are expected to appear in court next week.
