Passenger from Congo tells border agents the food in their suitcase is ‘fine’, what agents actually found got everything seized and destroyed

Chicago O’Hare International Airport is one of the busiest airports in the world. The airport in Illinois saw 48.3 million passengers in the first seven months of 2025. The airport is known as the most connected airport in the United States. Last week, officials at the airport took away some very strange items from a passenger coming from Congo.

According to CBS News, the traveler’s bag was full of illegal items that were later destroyed. The bag weighed a lot because it had 11 pounds of beans that were infected with pests. It also had 17 pounds of unknown plants. But that wasn’t all. Customs and Border Protection officials found something much more shocking inside the bag.

Officials wrote on X that they had also taken away mummified small primates from the traveler’s case. They shared four pictures of the dried and tied-up animals. The final item they found was 4 pounds of non-human primate meat. The person was trying to fly this meat from Congo to Chicago. Officials haven’t said what kind of primate the meat came from.

The passenger thought everything was perfectly legal

The CBP said the traveler believed the food they were bringing into America was fine. Officials made it clear in their statement that it was not. After taking away and destroying the items, the agency explained that these products are banned from entering the United States. These items could carry dangerous diseases and might bring pests into the country.

The passenger has not been named and has not been charged with any crime, the CBP confirmed. Meat from non-human primates, antelope, and rats are all called bushmeat. This term is used for any meat that comes from wild animals in certain parts of the world, including Africa and other areas. The umbrella term covers non-human primate meat as well as the bodies of rodents, bats, and duiker, which is a type of antelope.

It is illegal to bring bushmeat into the country. The reason is that bushmeat could be infected with germs that can make people sick. For those wondering about what mechanics think of luxury vehicles, transportation choices often come with their own unique challenges. The agency said that bushmeat in any amount found at US ports will be destroyed. Any personal items that may have touched the bushmeat will also be destroyed.

There is also a huge $250,000 fine for bringing bushmeat into the United States. Chicago O’Hare has had a tough year with various problems. The airport had to cancel almost 100 flights over the holidays because of severe weather warnings. Earlier this year, police confirmed that a shooting happened outside a terminal after several people got into a fight.

The City of Chicago also continued to clash with American Airlines over gate assignments. Meanwhile, a Chicago vendor couple’s border patrol encounter made headlines recently for very different reasons. It has been a very busy year for O’Hare staff, and incidents like this confiscation add to the challenges they face at one of America’s most connected airports.