An Icelandic couple was arrested in Brazil between Christmas and New Year on suspicion of planning to smuggle four kilos of cocaine out of the country. If charged and found guilty, they could face up to 15 years in prison, according to DV.
The couple was arrested at a motel in the city of Fortaleza, on the north coast of Brazil, RÚV reports. The man is 26 years old, the woman 20. According to the Brazilian media, the drugs were concealed inside hidden compartments of suitcases and condoms.
The Foreign Ministry of Iceland has confirmed that the couple was arrested and that their relatives have contacted the ministry.
This is not the first time Icelanders are arrested in drug-related cases in Brazil. In 2009, an Icelandic man was arrested in Brazil in possession of six kilos of cocaine. He was released at the end of 2013 due to poor health.
In 2007, another Icelander was arrested in Brazil in possession of 2.5 kilos of cocaine, resulting in an almost four-year prison sentence.
In 2006, an Icelandic man was arrested with 12 kilos of cannabis and sentenced to six years and eight months in prison. That same year, another Icelander received a three-year prison sentence for being caught with two kilos of cocaine.
The harshest sentence given to an Icelander in Brazil was in 2012, when a man received a 22-year prison sentence for smuggling about 50,000 ecstasy pills.
