The weary, disheveled woman tossed and turned in her bed. It was two in the morning, and the trucks at the nearby warehouse were grinding their gears, braking loudly, and making that maddening “Beep! Beep! Beep!” sound that a postal truck makes when in reverse gear.
What is so important that you have to truck it in the middle of the night? she wondered.
Finally, the unwilling insomniac could stand no more. She called the police and complained about the noise.
A quick check downtown revealed that the warehouse was leased to a toy import company. That set the officers to wondering. Christmas was still many months away. Why would a toy company be working round the clock to ship Chinese dolls and robots that spew smoke?
Ten minutes later, the two officers who had been sent to follow up on the disturbing-the-peace complaint pulled their cruiser up behind the working docks. When they stepped out of their vehicle, the men on the loading dock scattered and disappeared into the night.
The officers figured they must have a burglary in progress and called for backup. Three of the men were quickly apprehended in the neighborhood, but they turned out to be the rightful occupants of the warehouse.
So why had they fled?
Well, they weren’t burglars, but they were guilty of a bit more than disturbing the peace. The police searched the warehouse and ended up seizing twenty-two tons of cocaine, with a street value of more than six billion dollars.
It was the biggest drug raid in U.S. history, and it carries a lesson for all would-be dumb criminals: If you’re going to mess with Uncle Sam, make sure you don’t wake up the neighbors!