The Internal Security Forces said Wednesday it has arrested the man responsible for smuggling over 13 kilograms of cocaine into Beirut’s airport seven months ago.
“As a result of an intensive follow-up ... to identify the circumstances of the smuggling operation, a member of the [drug-ring] who placed the bag in the [airport] bathroom was identified,” an ISF statement reported.
R.S., a Lebanese national born in 1973, was arrested in the Bekaa and admitted to dropping the bag off at an airport bathroom in return for $10,000, according to the statement. Investigations also led to the identification of other suspected members of the ring, based locally and abroad. The ISF said it was working to apprehend the remaining suspects.
A large handbag stuffed with 13.7 kilograms of cocaine was found on Dec. 18, 2017, in an arrivals terminal bathroom of Beirut’s Rafik Hariri International Airport, an airport source told The Daily Star at the time. The source said security forces opened the bag after it was found by airport staff. It was handed over to Customs officials, who opened an investigation.
This article has been adapted from its original source.
