Customs officers at Keflavik Airport apprehended 17 alleged drug mules in 2013. Five of these were Icelanders and 12 were from other countries, visir.is reports.
Keflavík International Airport. Photo: Geir Ólafsson/Iceland Review.
According to head of customs at the airport, Kári Gunnlaugsson, 15 men and two women were caught in 2013, which shows an overwhelming majority of men among those attempting to smuggle drugs to Iceland.
According to preliminary results of the Directorate of Customs, the said individuals had been carrying a total of approximately 11 kilograms of amphetamine, two kilograms of cocaine and 14,186 e-tablets, in addition to amphetamine base in a bottle which one of the drug mules broke at the airport. In addition, minor quantities of cannabis were confiscated.
The perpetrators had hidden the narcotics by swallowing them or concealing them in their clothing or in their luggage. “These are the three smuggling methods most often attempted at Keflavik Airport,” explained Kári, pointing out that the human body has a few different orifices which can be put to use in this context.
“Last year’s most memorable case was that of the man who threw the bottle containing the amphetamine base to the floor. Such a bottle can be used to make 10-15 kilograms of amphetamine. And it is a good indicator of how hardcore the drug world has become.”
As previously stated, this is a higher quantity of narcotics confiscated than in previous years.
As a comparison, in 2012, customs officers detained 16 drug mules at the airport carrying 9.5 kilos of amphetamines, 4.8 kilos of cocaine, 1,530 e-tablets and 415 grams of e-tablet powder. These were ten Icelanders and six foreigners.
In Kári’s opinion, this is a sign that customs officials are doing their job properly. It is harder to draw the conclusion whether more drugs are now being trafficked than before, he added.
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