Crystal Tadlock may think twice before accepting anything from a Delta attendant again. Flying back from Paris, the Colorado woman accepted a free apple handed out by an attendant and stuffed it in her carry-on bag — only to discover at customs that the fruit would cost her $500. The customs agent “asked me if my trip to France was expensive and I said, ‘yeah.’ I didn’t really get why he was asking that question, and then he said ‘It’s about to get a lot more expensive after I charge you $500.'” She asked if she could toss the apple or eat it, but the agent said no.
… Customs and Border Patrol responded by blaming Tadlock — not Delta. And Delta — which handed out the apples on the flight back the U.S. — also blamed her saying “we encourage our customers to follow US Customs and Border Protection protocols.”