Two 18-year-old girls from Iceland were detained in Prague last week after customs found 3 kilograms of cocaine in their luggage. The girls, who had been traveling since August, arrived in the Czech Republic from Brazil via Munich on Wednesday.

Archive photo by Páll Stefánsson.

According to Fréttablaðið, the young women, who have denied all charges, have been placed in custody for seven months.

Despite suspicions about the girls’ luggage, the authorities permitted them to fly on to Prague in the hope of catching possible accomplices. However, no one else has been arrested.

The girls had reportedly planned to continue their journey by train to Copenhagen. They say that the suitcase was a gift from an American friend who they came to know in Iceland.

Minister for Foreign Affairs Össur Skarphéðinsson says cases such as these involving young people are particularly distressing for families.

"It is of course very upsetting. “We will do all we can in our power to help but unfortunately we cannot get people out of prison or out of custody, but we will do our best,” he comments.

It is thought that it will be a minimum of three months before a verdict is made. If found guilty, the young women could face between five and eight years in prison.

ZR