Saturday, May 20, 2006

90-year-old Taiwanese drugs mule arrested in Cambodia

May 20, 2006
By Agence France-Presse

PHNOM PENH -- A 90-year-old Taiwanese man was arrested in Cambodia on Saturday with 1.9 kilograms (4.2 pounds) of heroin strapped to his body as he prepared to board a flight for Hong Kong, police said.

"We became suspicious because he was walking in a funny way. Also his hip looked unusually bigger, so we checked his body," airport police chief Chhay Bunna told AFP.

Police on Friday arrested another 57-year-old Taiwanese national as he was about to board a flight to Kuala Lumpur. He was carrying 6.5 kilograms (14.3 pounds) of heroin in what appeared to be four bags of sugar.

"We saw him holding four plastic sugar bags. When we asked him about the bags, he seemed shocked. So we decided to check and found heroin," Chhay Bunna said.

It was not known if the two arrests were being treated as connected.

Such heroin hauls carry a mandatory 20-year sentence, along with a fine of up to 25,000 dollars.

Impoverished Cambodia is becoming an increasingly popular trafficking point for methamphetamines and heroin, particularly since neighboring Thailand toughened its stance on drugs in 2002.

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