Suspect test kits seized at O'Hare International Airport

CHICAGO (AP) - Illegal coronavirus test kits were seized by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers working at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport, authorities announced Thursday.

The officers intercepted packages containing the illicit drug kits Thursday after they arrived from the United Kingdom. Authorities say the some of the ``test kits" were marked as coronavirus tests, while others were labeled as tests for meningitis, MRSA, salmonella and other diseases.

The Food and Drug Administration deemed the tests unapproved and took them for analysis, according to authorities. Customs and Border Protection spokesman Steve Bansbach said he could not say whether the tests were counterfeit.

Chief Supervisory Officer Lesley Lukens is warning the public that testing for coronavirus is conducted only in verified state and local public health laboratories located around the nation.

Last week, customs officials at Los Angeles International Airport confiscated a shipment of suspect COVID-19 tests shipped from the U.K. in packages labeled 'œPurified Water Vials.'ť Subsequent inspection revealed the vials were filled with a white liquid and labeled as coronavirust test kits. The packages were handed over to the Food and Drug Administration.