A European man devised an unconventional way to smuggle marijuana, but he now will have to pay the price.
Sergei Bacaianov, from Ireland, was halted as he traveled by ferry from the Netherlands to the port of Killingholme in the UK. Multiple officers identified him and the delivery truck as being worth a search.
Officers found the trailer packed with fresh chicken. It seemed innocent enough until border patrol noticed new welding and a paint job that suggested the trailer had been tampered with. Underneath the poultry were three sliding drawers filled with 31 kilos of marijuana with a street value of £620,000. Bacaianov reportedly tried to play the whole thing off, pleading that he was unaware of what he was transporting.
David Cunningham, the Belfast Branch Commander of the National Crime Agency (NCA), determined that evidence, including DNA, ruled out the idea. In a statement, he said that Bacaianov was “not only aware of the illegal load he was smuggling, but involved in loading the drugs into a sophisticated hide beneath the floor of his trailer.” The intended destination of those drugs was believed to have been Northern Ireland, according to Cunningham.
Bacaianov was sentenced to two and a half years in prison on drug importation charges.
“The message to those who choose to get involved in this type of criminality is simple,” Cunningham added. “The NCA and our partner enforcement agencies will use every available tactic to identify you, seize your vehicles and bring you to justice.”
Using chicken to cover up a secret hatch in a trailer is a pretty creative way of attempting to conceal something. That being said, it’s not the only unique way would-be smugglers have used recently.
A Scottish man was busted for attempting to sneak cocaine out of South America. His choice of concealment was banana boxes. Others have attempted to go incognito in the trade by using coconuts. They’ve even tried doing so through footwear. Ultimately, all of these whacky attempts seem to have the same ending, so in reality, how actually productive were these disguises?
The post Man Hides Weed Under Chicken in Failed £620,000 Smuggling Plot appeared first on VICE.
The post Man Hides Weed Under Chicken in Failed £620,000 Smuggling Plot appeared first on VICE.
