Methamphetamine is hidden in packages transported by air from Europe to Vietnam. Photo courtesy of Hanoi police
Hanoi police have arrested three suspects involved in the smuggling of 97.5 kg of crystal meth, disguised as wine, from Europe to Vietnam by air.
The Hanoi Drug Crime Investigation Police Department announced Wednesday the detention of Truong Huu Tuan and Tran Ngoc Anh, both 29, along with Nguyen Van Tuan, 26, on charges of illegal drug transportation.
Initial investigations revealed that in mid-July, police identified a suspicious shipment sent from Europe to Vietnam by air, suspecting it was part of a large-scale drug trafficking operation.
The recipient of the nine boxes was identified as a man residing in Hai Phong near Hanoi.
Police launched a special team to monitor the case, later discovering that some individuals were planning to retrieve the shipment at an address in Hanoi’s Nam Tu Liem District.
On July 19, police apprehended Truong Huu Tuan as he was transporting the nine boxes from a car into a hotel in the European Vietnamese Village area in Hanoi’s Ha Dong District.
The boxes contained 97.5 kg of vacuum-packed crystal meth, disguised in wine bags.
Tuan admitted that he had been hired by a stranger to collect the goods in Hanoi for VND7 million (US$290). His travel and accommodation were arranged by this individual. Tuan received the goods from another person at the same location and was awaiting further instructions when he was arrested.
Further investigations led to the arrests of Anh and Nguyen Van Tuan. Anh revealed that he had been hired by a man he met on social media to travel from southern Binh Duong Province to Hanoi with a phone, for which he was paid VND5 million (US$207). He invited Nguyen Van Tuan to accompany him.
Anh’s task was to deliver the phone to a courier company and inform them that someone would pick up the shipment later.
The police are continuing to expand the investigation into this case.
Vietnam enforces some of the strictest drug laws in the world, including the death penalty for those convicted of possessing or smuggling more than 600 grams of heroin or cocaine, or over 2.5 kg of methamphetamine. The production or sale of 100 grams of heroin or 300 grams of other narcotics also faces the death penalty.
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