$500 Apple

A woman flying on Delta Air Lines from France to the United States was fined $500 by the U.S. customs agency for carrying undeclared agricultural items across international borders.  The item in question was an apple that was given out by the airline as a snack during the flight.  She had placed the apple in her bag to eat on a later flight, and it was found during a random bag search.  The customs agent who found it asked the woman if her flight to France had been expensive.  When she replied that it had been, the customs agent replied, “It’s about to get a lot more expensive after I charge you $500.”

In addition to the fine, they also revoked her Global Entry status, which allows for expedited security checks, and put her on the watch list, so that she will automatically be searched on every flight for the rest of her life.  A Delta Air Lines spokesperson stated that “The apple in question was part of an in-flight meal meant to be consumed on the aircraft.”

The woman is pursuing a legal case against both the airlines and government, and she has taken to Twitter to warn others about this injustice. #anappleadaydoesntkeepcustomsaway

Honestly, this story sounds like something that would happen to me.  But the guy sitting next to me on the plane smuggling drugs would get through.