Cocaine worth nearly Rs. 17 Mn impounded at BIA; foreigner arrested
March 13, 2023 04:33 pm
Sri Lanka Customs has intercepted a stock of cocaine, worth nearly Rs. 17 million, at the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA).
The contraband had been smuggled in by a Macedonian national who arrived from Brazil.
The suspect was arrested by the Narcotics Control Unit of the Customs upon his arrival at the airport at around 8.30 a.m. this morning (March 13).
He had first travelled to the Qatari capital Doha from Brazil before reaching Colombo on a flight belonging to Qatar Airways, according to Customs spokesperson.
Deputy Director of Customs (Legal Affairs) Sudatta Silva said the suspect, who discreetly packed 350 grams of cocaine into a packet of soup, had hidden it among other packets of soup he carried inside his luggage.
The Macedonian national, who was posing as a top-level official of the UN, was also in possession of a fake employee ID.
The suspect and the impounded cocaine were to be handed over to the Police Narcotics Bureau (PNB) for onward investigations.
