CAIRO: An attempt to smuggle narcotic pills into Egypt has been thwarted by customs offers at Cairo International Airport.
The pills were hidden in a milk container in a passenger’s luggage from Qatar.
The traveler has been arrested and referred to the prosecution authorities for legal action.
The arrest followed a tip-off from the General Department for Drug Control at the airport indicating that a passenger on a Qatar Airways flight intended to smuggle contraband into the country.
Amr Attia, director of traffic at the airport, and Rawda Tarek, a customs officer, were assigned to search the passenger’s bags.
A metal milk container sealed with a layer of reinforced aluminum to hide drugs, as well as a plastic can the lid of which hid several capsules, were discovered.
The seized narcotics are believed to be tramadol, a synthetic opioid analgesic used to treat severe or chronic pain and which is sold under various brand names with a prescription. It should not be circulated without consulting a doctor as dependence on tramadol can develop after continuous use of it which, may lead to addiction.
In April, the customs authorities at the airport arrested an Egyptian passenger in possession of 1,220 capsules of tramadol who had hidden them in a food package.
