An Alabama man has found himself on the wrong side of the law after U.S. Customs agents discovered nearly 3,000 pain pills hidden in his luggage at Miami International Airport. Chip Ervin, the 46-year-old man from Fayette, alighted from an American Airlines flight that originated in Medellin, Colombia. It was during a secondary inspection that the significant stash of pills came to light, a detail confirmed by an NBC Miami report.
The sequence of events leading to Ervin's arrest began when Customs agents, having suspicions about Ervin's baggage, decided to conduct a more thorough search. Containers filled with white pills were reportedly found inside, which later tested positive for hydrocodone and acetaminophen. According to the same report by NBC Miami, Ervin claimed the trip to Colombia was made to obtain dental work.
Following the discovery, the Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office Narcotics Interdiction Squad took over the investigation. They were the ones who booked Ervin into the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center on charges of hydrocodone trafficking. In their coverage, the Miami Herald stated that the total count of pills in Ervin's possession was 2,997.
Ervin's encounter with the legal system quickly led to a bond hearing. Booked into jail, detectives said that he stayed behind bars until a judge could set bond, with a public defender appointed to represent him. "Ervin appeared in court Sunday where he was given a $200,000 bond and appointed a public defender," the NBC Miami report further detailed, a statement potentially influenced by the sheer volume of the alleged controlled substances involved. As this case progresses, further details are anticipated to emerge regarding Ervin's intentions and the circumstances leading up to his arrest.
