Busted With Whale Bones In Luggage

A passenger coming from Iceland was stopped by customs at BWI airport and found to be in possession of whale bones.

The Baltimore Sun reports that a passenger arriving at Baltimore-Washington International airport from Iceland was stopped by customs and found to be in possession of whale bones.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection subsequently confiscated the bones. From here, the bones will be inspected to see if they belong to an endangered species of whale or not. If not, they will be returned to the passenger. If they are from an endangered species, however, the passenger in question could be in hot water – both US and international law restrict the importing of the bones of an endangered species.

It was not disclosed whether the passenger was an Icelander, or just a tourist who happened to obtain the bones in Iceland. Regardless, international law still applies.

A formal determination on the species to which the bones belonged is still pending.