Chinese man accused of trafficking drugs hidden in an orange
Suspect made a small incision in the fruit and pushed sachet of methamphetamine inside before giving it to courier firm for delivery, news website reports
A man has been arrested for trying to send drugs across China hidden inside a batch of oranges, according to a news website report.
The courier became suspicious after the sender kept ringing to check where the batch of seven oranges was during delivery, Newssc,org reported.
The courier checked the fruit and found a small cut in one, with a sachet of methamphetamine pushed inside.
The suspect, 25, whose full name was not given, tried to send the fruit from Chengdu in Sichuan province to Hainan island.
He bought 1kg (2 pounds) of fruit and practised making small incisions to hide the drugs before calling the courier company on Monday to send the batch of oranges.
Police said there were 0.55 grams (0.02 ounces) of drugs in one of the fruits.
“The amount was not large, but the method allowed concealment [of drugs] and the case is a very important warning,” a police officer was quoted as saying.
The report said the police regularly train couriers to increase their awareness of suspect packages.
The buyer of the drugs in Hainan, who was not named, paid the sender 300 yuan (US$47) to purchase and deliver the drugs.
The sender said he spent 200 yuan buying the drugs and after costs for buying and transporting the fruit he only made 30 yuan.
The suspect has been detained for alleged drug trafficking, the article said.
