Icelandic citizen Sverrir Þór Gunnarsson, who goes by the name Sveddi tönn, was sentenced to 22 years in prison in Rio de Janeiro for drug smuggling last week. He plans to appeal the verdict.
According to Fréttablaðið, it is the longest sentence an Icelander has ever been given for such charges anywhere in the world.
Sverrir was arrested in early July after more than 50,000 ecstasy pills were found in the luggage of a woman caught at the Galeão International Airport in Rio de Janeiro. He was considered to have organized the smuggling.
Sverrir was one of two ringleaders in a major drug bust in Iceland at the turn of the millennium. He has lived abroad since he got out of jail and has repeatedly been implicated in drug smuggling to Iceland from Spain and South America.
Sverrir has also yet to serve nine years in prison in Spain on charges of drugs.
ESA
