Joint operation between the Tax Agency and the Civil Guard

• The passenger from a flight from Amsterdam (Holland) was hiding the drug inside his body

• He had ingested 132 'acorns' of heroin, which posed a great risk to his health

May 23, 2022.- Officials from the Customs Surveillance Service of the Risk Analysis Unit of the Tax Agency together with civil guards from the Analysis and Tax Office of the Bilbao airport, have seized 1,520 grams of heroin hidden inside the body of a passenger from Amsterdam.

The Customs Surveillance Service and the agents of the ODAIFI , within the framework of the State Fiscal Safeguard powers under the functional dependency of the Regional Customs Department and II. EE. of the Basque Country, daily carry out, among other actions, inspections of passengers and luggage according to preventive risk criteria at Bilbao airport.

During a tax inspection of the luggage of a flight from Amsterdam to Bilbao, the agents observed a certain nervousness in a passenger, so they asked him the usual questions about his origin, to which the traveller responded with incoherent answers, finally revealing that he was carrying a large quantity of 'drug pellets' inside his body.

He was immediately transferred to the Basurto University Hospital in order to carry out the corresponding medical tests to safeguard his physical integrity and determine the number of 'acorns' he was carrying in his stomach.

The radiological inspection and subsequent scan confirmed that he was carrying a large number of foreign bodies inside his abdomen, so he was immediately admitted for observation and custody.

The radiological examination having a positive result, the individual was arrested for alleged drug trafficking and was held in custody by agents from both agencies at the Basurto hospital until the 'acorns' were completely evacuated.

Once the detainee expelled all the 'balls', the agents counted a total of 132 'acorns', which weighed a total of 1,520 grams. After performing the narco test, the substance in the acorns tested positive for heroin.

After being discharged from hospital by medical staff, the detainee, along with the proceedings, were handed over to the Court of Instruction No. 7 of Bilbao, which is handling the case.