Any random sample of drug couriers arrested at a United States airport in an average week is likely to include large numbers of West Africans attempting to smuggle heroin or cocaine into the country. These same couriers will appear again at various stages throughout the justice system from arraignment to guilty plea (or the occasional trial) to sentencing and imprisonment. The same phenomenon occurs at airports in London, Amsterdam, and other European cities. The article describes how and why the West African drug smuggling trade originated, and offers a portrait of the typical African drug courier. Possible ways to stop the flow of West African drug smugglers into Western prisons include: (1) longer prison sentences, although the benefits gained from imprisonment of low-level couriers are debatable; (2) prisoner exchange, whereby offenders serve their sentences in their home countries; (3) legalization of drugs; (4) tightening airport security in the countries where the smuggling originates; (5) education and publicity in the countries of origin; (6) changes in US visa policy; and (7) improving the standard of living in countries of origin. Notes