LAX security guards opened the suitcase and found clothing soaked in meth, officials said

A student was arrested at LAX after security found her pink suitcase full of what authorities suspect were more than a dozen white T-shirts soaked in liquid methamphetamine.

A UK student, Myah Saakwa-Mante, had a two-day stopover in Los Angeles and returned to Los Angeles International Airport on November 2 to check in on a Qantas Airlines flight. His final destination was Brisbane, Australia.

She told government officials that she was on her way to meet her boyfriend for the first time.

After an initial security check flagged Saakwa-Mante’s luggage as “potential contraband,” US Customs and Border Protection officials opened the suitcase and found jeans, shoes and a Louis Vuitton bag. “Officers also observed a white powder residue loose from the suitcase and visible on their black gloves,” according to an affidavit summarizing the incident.

Suspicious, the officers unzipped the suitcase and found a stack of 13 white T-shirts that were “wet and appeared to have a white powder on them,” according to the affidavit.

Authorities detained Saakwa-Mante at his gate before his flight took off, and he spoke briefly with government officials. Saakwa-Mante, who is listed in court records as being almost 20 years old, confirmed to the workers that the owner of the suitcase then explained that her boyfriend was going to meet her boyfriend.

Although he admitted to buying the white T-shirts at Target — and had receipts to prove it — he “said he had no knowledge” of the white powder that was on the wet shirts, the affidavit said.

Police tested the substance found in the t-shirts and confirmed it was methamphetamine. The exact amount of the drug is unclear; the agent’s affidavit contained an estimate of “several kilograms” of the drug that had been soaked in the t-shirts.

In his affidavit, Special Agent Omar Yasin of the US Homeland Security Investigations testified that the methamphetamine “was originally a powder,” then it was diluted with an emollient and mixed with shirts. “Over time at room temperature or in a cold environment, the solution evaporated and the powdered methamphetamine separated from the shirts,” resulting in a powdery residue, the agent wrote.

After his arrest, Saakwa-Mante was charged in US District Court with unlawful possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute. Authorities seized two of his phones and asked a federal judge for permission to search the devices as part of their investigation, according to a criminal complaint filed Nov. 4.

On Nov. 5, Saakwa-Mante appeared in a district court in L.A. It was unclear if he entered a plea. His court-appointed attorney, deputy public defender Rebecca Harris, did not return an email seeking comment.

Saakwa-Mante has been in custody since his arrest, with prosecutors arguing that there is a “high risk” that he could flee the country. His lawyer has ruled that he be released before the trial, and a hearing on his request is expected on Tuesday.