What led to the U.S. Post Office decision not to allow customs canines into the Pago Pago Post Office to sniff out drugs?
It was the testimony of the Chief of Customs Iuliano Falaniko before the Senate Select Investigative Committee that U.S. Postal inspectors stopped the use of customs dogs at the postal facility.
KHJ News sent questions to the U.S. Postal Service media officer to explain the reason for their decision. We asked about the circumstances which led to the customs dogs being disallowed in the Post Office, and whether there had been any incident at the local post office when the customs dogs were previously allowed there.
Our questions were referred to Postal Inspector Matthew Norfleet of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, San Francisco.
Norfleet said he cannot respond directly to the statements by the Chief of Customs Iuliano Falaniko, as he didn’t hear the remarks himself.
He said postal inspectors continue to work with American Samoa Customs, and other law enforcement agencies in American Samoa, to seize contraband from the mail and identify suspected criminals.
He added, “Due to the sometimes covert nature of drug trafficking investigations, we will never comment publicly about when dogs are intended to be used.”
“Regarding postal policy, only postal inspectors are authorized to conduct criminal investigations in USPS facilities or involving U.S. mail before it is delivered. Postal inspectors have the mission of preventing the U.S. mail from being used for criminal purposes, which includes investigating suspected trafficking of controlled substances.”
Norfleet concluded, “We are proud of our reputation for teamwork — postal inspectors work day and night with local, territorial, state, and federal agencies throughout the country and internationally to prohibit the use of the mail for criminal purposes and bring criminals to justice.”
