Traveler stopped after flying with entire cooked pig found in luggage

Airport security at Detroit Metro Airport stopped a traveler who was attempting to bring a whole cooked pig through security – you read that right!

Traveling by plane often comes with baggage issues, whether you’re flying within your country or internationally. You might find your luggage is slightly overweight or your carry-on is a bit too large. This could mean extra fees or even having to leave items behind.

Plus, there are many rules about what you’re allowed to pack in your suitcase. Having your bag searched is often stressful, particularly when they ask if you packed it yourself – it can make you second-guess everything.

But in Detroit, airport security discovered something unusual: a whole cooked pig hidden inside a traveler’s suitcase.

Flyer had “entire cooked pig” in their luggage

Marty C. Raybon, the Detroit Customs and Border Patrol Field Operations Director, brought attention to the strange luggage after noticing it and posting about it on social media.

According to Raybon, airport officials at Detroit Metro Airport discovered a traveler arriving from Togo had packed a whole cooked pig in their checked luggage. He also shared a photo of the unusual find.

Pork products are usually not allowed because of the potential for bringing African swine fever into the United States.

Customs officials at Detroit Metro Airport discovered a traveler had packed a whole cooked pig in their luggage. Bringing in pork products is usually not allowed because of the potential to spread African swine fever, a disease that affects pigs, in the United States. You can find more information about this issue online.

— CBP Director of Field Operations Marty C. Raybon (@DFODetroit) May 8, 2026

According to the blog Paddle Your Own Kanoo, finding a cooked pig in someone’s luggage is rare, but it’s happened before and will likely happen again. Travelers are sometimes caught trying to bring cooked food with them.

The traveler probably had to get rid of their food before being permitted into the U.S. Otherwise, they would have been denied entry at baggage claim and sent back to their country of origin.

Airlines are starting to enforce stricter rules about how passengers behave. This includes prohibiting the use of smart glasses to record crew members and requiring travelers to use headphones instead of playing music on speakers.

If you don’t follow these rules, you may be removed from the flight, and could be prohibited from flying with the airline again in the future.

2026-05-11 16:19

Flyer had “entire cooked pig” in their luggage

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