A Venezuela national was arrested on Monday
for allegedly trying to smuggle cocaine with a street value of Sh8 million via JKIA.
Officers from KRA, the DCI, NIS and KPA seized two 2.5kg packages of the substance during routine passenger searches.
The suitcase with Sh8 million cocaine that a Venezuelan was found with at the JKIA in Nairobi, December 25, 2017. /COURTESY
Julius Musyoki,
Customs and Border Control commissioner for the Kenya Revenue Authority, said the substance had been carefully sealed in a false bottom slot on suspect Medina Paez' suitcase.
Paez arrived in an Ethiopian Airlines plane from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on a tourist visa.
His arrest took place amid heightened security at the airport during the holidays.
/COURTESY
/COURTESY
“The attempt by the Venezuelan drug trafficker to smuggle such a sizable
cocaine package was based on the mistaken view that security at the airport would be low. However, we are all operating on a red alert mode through the festive season and beyond to guarantee national security,” Musyoki said.
The packages were handed to the Anti-Narcotics Police unit for investigations. The suspect is expected in court on Wednesday.
