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Returning tourists arrested in north Russia on attempt to smuggle cocaine

Xinhua, March 31, 2015 Adjust font size:

Customs officers at the airport of St. Petersburg, northern Russia, on Monday reported the arrests of four local residents after a purported attempt to smuggle cocaine into the country by dissolving it in bottles of Caribbean rum.

A spokesperson for the Russian Interior Ministry in the country 's Northwest Federal District confirmed that two of the group, aged between 19 and 30 years, had been taken into police custody while the remaining two had been released on bail pending further charges.

A total of 23 bottles of rum containing around 25 grams of dissolved cocaine were found in the group's luggage as they returned from a visit to the Dominican Republic.

The individuals concerned now face up to 20 years in prison under Russian law if found guilty of narcotics smuggling.

Customs authorities worldwide have been forced to implement new detection strategies in recent years as the smuggling of dissolved cocaine has become increasingly widespread. Endite