United States v. Wing Fook Lui

Appellant Wing Fook Lui appeals his conviction on one count of importation of heroin, in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 952 (a), and one count of possession with intent to distribute heroin, in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841 (a)(1), following a jury trial. We have jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1291 and we affirm.

I

On May 5, 1989 Lui arrived at Los Ange-les International Airport. Lui had begun his trip in Hong Kong, stopping for ten days in Taiwan and two days in Korea. A United States Customs Inspector, noticing that Lui appeared nervous, approached him and asked to see his plane ticket, passport, and customs declaration. Lui told the Inspector that he had come to Los Angeles to show samples of jade figurines to his nephew, who Lui said owned a store. Noting that Lui had failed to claim the figurines on his customs declaration, the inspector decided to bring Lui and his luggage to a secondary inspection area. After some delay, the inspector found two hard-shell suitcases that Lui identified as his.

At the inspector’s direction, Lui opened the suitcases and removed some of the loosely packed clothing inside. As Lui did so, the inspector noticed that each side of the suitcases…