Moment Brit is caught with two kilos of cocaine hidden under his Mexican sombrero as he leaves Colombia
This is the moment Colombian police pounce on a suspected British cocaine smuggler and find two kilos of the drug hidden under a Mexican sombrero in his suitcase as he tries to leave the country.
Police saw the white powder turn blue after he took a color test at Cartagena International Airport before taking him away for a mugshot.
The illegal contents of his luggage, found in a false bottom, were laid out in front of him with a sign reading ‘COCAINA’ in capital letters.
The arrest occurred as the unnamed traveler attempted to board a flight to Panama, although he planned to travel from there to Istanbul and investigators are trying to determine the final destination of the drugs.
The Briton was spotted by police as he passed the suitcase through an X-ray scanner at Rafael Nunez International Airport, which serves the port city of Cartagena on Colombia’s Caribbean coast.
This is the moment Colombian police pounce on a suspected British cocaine smuggler and find two kilos of the drug hidden under a Mexican sombrero in his suitcase as he tries to leave the country
The Brit had to stand between two armed officers for his mugshot in an expensive Dsquared2 designer T-shirt after the discovery of the drugs
The illegal contents of his luggage, found in a false bottom, were laid out in front of him with a sign reading ‘COCAINA’ in capital letters.
Through an interpreter, he was asked in English if it was his luggage before it was opened for him.
After the discovery of the drugs, he had to stand between two armed officers for his mugshot in an expensive Dsquared2 designer T-shirt.
It was not immediately clear last night whether he has yet appeared in court to be remanded in custody pending an ongoing investigation.
Four weeks ago, a Scottish man was arrested after two kilos of cocaine were also found in his suitcase when he tried to fly from the same airport.
Ricky Grant Courage, 32, from Aberdeen, planned to fly back to Britain via Amsterdam with the drugs. He is currently being held in pre-trial detention at a local jail.
It is not known whether the two cases are linked.
In April, a British student was arrested after being caught smuggling cocaine disguised as milk from Colombia.
The Briton was picked up by police as he passed the suitcase through an X-ray scanner at Rafael Nunez International Airport, which serves the port city of Cartagena on Colombia’s Caribbean coast.
Police saw the white powder turn blue after he took a color test at Cartagena International Airport before taking him away for a mugshot
The 25-year-old was stopped as he tried to board a plane to London from Alfonso Bonilla Aragon International Airport near the city of Cali.
Officers opened the packets of powdered milk he was carrying before taking a drug color test at the airport to confirm they contained the illegal Class A substance.
The Briton, locally named Fahad Uddin Ahmed and described as a student, was forced to pose for his illegal drug stash by Colombian police before being taken away as a prisoner.
Local reports at the time said the plane he planned to board was bound for London with a connection in the German city of Frankfurt.
It is said that he carried the cocaine in his carry-on luggage in four bags marked Klim.
Last October, a British model who flaunted his jet-set lifestyle on social media in Peru was jailed for seven years after he was caught trying to fly out of the country with £300,000 worth of cocaine.
Londoner Modou Dodou Adams wowed his thousands of social media fans with his trendsetting looks and VIP world travels under the self-styled name ‘boywholives’ in a show of excess branded by authorities as a cover for his criminal activities.
His apparent world of glamor was left in tatters after he confessed to being a drug trafficker and was told he will now spend the next six years and eight months in a hellish South American prison.
Adams, 25, was detained at Lima International Airport as he tried to check in for a flight to London via Paris with almost three kilos of cocaine in his suitcase.
He was sentenced in a speedy trial 24 hours after his arrest by the same police force that detained Michaella McCollum and Melissa Reid, the so-called Peru Two, in August 2013.
It was not immediately clear last night whether he has already appeared in court to be remanded in custody pending an ongoing investigation
The Peru Two, Michaella McCollum from Dungannon, Northern Ireland, and Melissa Reid from Lenzie, Scotland, were arrested on suspicion of drug smuggling at Jorge Chávez International Airport, Lima, Peru, on August 6, 2013, after their luggage was found to contain 11 kilos . of cocaine.
They initially claimed they had been coerced by an armed gang, but subsequently pleaded guilty. On December 17, 2013, the couple was sentenced to six years and eight months in prison.
In early 2016, both women attempted to return to the United Kingdom.
McCollum applied for parole and was released on March 31, 2016, with the prospect of having to remain in Peru for up to six years.
In April 2016, Peruvian authorities agreed to deport Reid from the country.
She was released from prison on June 21 that year and immediately returned to Britain, arriving at Glasgow airport the next day.
McCollum returned to Europe two months later, arriving at Dublin Airport in Ireland on August 13, 2016. She later wrote a book about her experiences titled ‘You’ll Never See Daylight Again.’