Opinion ID: 711122
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: The Crime, Arrest, Trial, Conviction, and Sentence

Text: 4 The following is an account of the evidence presented by the government at trial. On February 13, 1994, Idowu was arrested at John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) for attempting to smuggle eight kilograms of heroin into the United States from Nigeria. The heroin was found in the defendant's suitcase during a routine examination by the United States Customs Service (Customs). According to the testimony of Special Agent Peter Killie, Idowu agreed to cooperate with law enforcement after her arrest. 5 Killie testified that Idowu told him she received the suitcase from a Mrs. T in Lagos, Nigeria, and that she was to travel to her home in Boston from JFK, where she would receive further instructions regarding the delivery of the suitcase. Initially, Idowu claimed not to know the contents of the suitcase. In an attempt to catch others involved in the scheme, agents transported Idowu home to Boston and arranged a so-called controlled delivery. Killie arranged for Idowu to call Mrs. T in Nigeria to tell her that she would be delayed in arriving in Boston. Idowu's calls to Nigeria were conducted in her native Yoruba language. After several unsuccessful attempts to reach Mrs. T, Idowu left a message, telling agents that she had asked Mrs. T to call her in Boston. 6 Agent Killie testified that he accompanied Idowu to Boston, where they were joined by Special Agents Edward Salvas and Jim Scott. In Boston, Idowu told Killie that half the heroin was for Daniel and the other half was for Mrs. T. This was later confirmed by agents who noted that the bags of heroin were labeled with initials on them. 7 Salvas testified that Idowu consented to a search of her apartment in Boston. Salvas testified that although Idowu told him no money or drugs were to be found in her apartment, the search uncovered approximately $14,993 in cash and $660 in traveler's checks. According to Salvas, when he confronted Idowu about the cash, she admitted carrying cash for Daniel to Nigeria and Chicago on several prior occasions. She also informed Salvas that she was instructed to call Daniel to arrange for delivery of the suitcase in the event she was unable to reach Mrs. T. Salvas testified that Idowu admitted that she had carried cash for Daniel to Nigeria on her most recent trip and that the money found in her apartment was related to drug transactions. He further testified that Idowu told him that she traveled from Boston to Nigeria on January 7, 1994, to attend her sister's wedding and, while she was there, Mrs. T asked her to carry a suitcase back to Boston. 8 According to the government, Salvas arranged for Idowu to call Daniel, and she spoke with him briefly--again, in Yoruba. Idowu told agents that from her conversation she believed Daniel knew that she had been arrested. However, subsequent transcription and translation of recordings of Idowu's previous phone calls indicated that in her first phone call to Nigeria, Idowu had told her contacts that she had been arrested. Salvas also testified that Idowu told him she had recently purchased a 1993 Nissan Altima. Although Idowu told him that she had shipped the vehicle to Nigeria, agents located the car in a parking lot at Boston's Logan Airport on February 17, 1994. Subsequent investigation revealed that the car had been bought with $16,000 in cash. 9 Idowu testified on her own behalf at trial, denying the charges against her. She admitted telling contacts during her phone calls to Nigeria that she had been arrested, but she denied telling agents that the heroin was for Mrs. T and Daniel or that she had carried money for Daniel on previous occasions. She claimed that she was simply doing a favor for Mrs. T by carrying what she believed to be a suitcase of food into the United States. She also testified that the Nissan was a gift from her boyfriend. Idowu testified that she supported herself and her son through public assistance, and that the nearly $15,000 in cash found in her apartment had been sent by her parents who are wealthy Nigerians. On August 17, 1994, the jury returned a verdict of guilty on both counts of the indictment. On February 9, 1995, after denying Idowu's motion to dismiss pursuant to Rule 29--which will be discussed in greater detail below--the district court sentenced Idowu principally to 151 months imprisonment, the minimum sentence under the guidelines.