- Kátyna Baía and Jeanne Paolini were arrested on suspicion of drug trafficking
A couple spent 38 days in a German prison after 'staff' at a Brazilian airport stuck their luggage tags on suitcases full of drugs.
Kátyna Baía and Jeanne Paolini, both in their 40s, were arrested in Frankfurt on suspicion of international drug trafficking after officers discovered 43kg of cocaine in luggage with their names on it.
An investigation in Brazil revealed that the innocent couple were involved in an international luggage swap ring at São Paulo International Airport. The sun reported.
Gruesome CCTV footage shows airport staff removing the couple's checked bags from the carousel before removing the tags and attaching them to the drug-filled luggage.
When Ms Baía and Ms Paolini arrived in Germany, they were wrongfully arrested and imprisoned for 38 days on suspicion of drug trafficking.
Kátyna Baía and Jeanne Paolini, both in their forties, were arrested in Fankfurt on suspicion of international drug trafficking
Horrifying CCTV footage shows airport staff removing the couple's checked bags from the carousel before removing the tags and attaching them to the drug-laden luggage
Staff can be seen briefly looking at the CCTV camera before changing labels
The pair had planned a nearly three-week trip to Europe, from where they live in Goiânia, Brazil, to Berlin, with connecting flights in São Paulo and Frankfurt.
Mrs. Paolini, a veterinarian, told the story The sun: 'This whole experience was a huge shock to us and our families.
'I was taken to a room with no windows and as soon as I walked in he asked me to put my hands on the wall and handcuffed me, saying I was under arrest.
“I obviously started asking why he was arresting me, but I could only understand the word 'cocaine' because he spoke German.”
The woman was reunited with her partner at an airport police station.
An investigation in Brazil revealed that the innocent couple were involved in an international luggage-swapping ring
CCTV footage shows staff removing labels and attaching them to drug-filled luggage
“It took us at least four hours to finally understand what had happened, when they (police) had to call in an interpreter,” Ms Paolini said.
“That's when we learned there was 43kg of cocaine in the bags.”
She added: 'It was then that we learned there was 43kg of cocaine in the bags.'
The two women spent a day in jail before being transported to a hearing, after which they were taken to a women's prison on the outskirts of Frankfurt for 38 days.
“At night I heard all those women crying, not knowing if Jeanne was one of them because we were in separate cells,” Ms. Baía said.
'We also lost count of the number of times we had to do strip searches, it was extremely humiliating.'