Brazil cops bust airport drug smuggling ring

Cocaine. (AFP FILE PHOTO)

Brazilian police said Tuesday they have broken a smuggling ring at Rio de Janeiro’s international airport that used baggage labels of unsuspecting passengers to send cocaine in suitcases abroad.

Federal police were serving 36 arrest warrants, with suspects including two customs officials and airport workers.

The 10 month probe revealed a “sophisticated drug trafficking network” involving customs, airport staff and airlines, the police said in a statement.

The smugglers would duplicate a baggage ticket issued to innocent travelers on domestic flights, which are less strictly regulated, and put this on a bag containing cocaine which was then sent on an international flight – generally to Europe.

Police said the discovery of 300 kilograms (661 pounds) of cocaine in September was the biggest haul ever seized at the airport.

The traffickers also used the luggage fraud to import foreign products through the airport without having to declare them.                    /kga