Society

Macao customs seize heroin worth $150,000

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2011-03-15 13:55

MACAO - Customs Service of Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) has netted 1.1 kilograms of heroin at Macao International Airport, which officials estimated could fetch some 1.2 million patacas ($150,000) on the street, the Macao Post Daily reported on Tuesday.

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The newspaper quoted a customs spokesman as saying that it was the first case of drug smuggling found at the airport this year.

According to the Judiciary Police (PJ), the suspected trafficker was a 35-year-old jobless woman from China's southwestern province of Sichuan and the drugs, packed in black plastic bags, were discovered during a regular luggage check at the airport.

Around 10 am on Sunday, the suspect flew into Macao on a flight from Kuala Lumpur of Malaysia. Officers at the airport conducted a regular inspection on the woman's luggage and an X-ray machine showed it had something suspicious in it. A sniffer dog also behaved in a way that indicated drugs were present.

On closer inspection, officers then found a total of 1,182 grams of heroin with a street value of $150,000 inside the luggage, according to PJ.

The suspect will be transferred to the Public prosecution for further investigation and possible arraignment on charges of drug trafficking, facing at least eight years behind bars if found guilty.