According to a story on MSN.com, Australian police seized about $162 million worth of methamphetamine hidden inside kayaks shipped from China.
“Five people were arrested in Sydney on Tuesday after customs officials discovered 183 kilograms of meth last week while inspecting a shipment of kayaks from China, the Australian Federal Police said,” the story reads.
It goes on to report that 19 of 27 kayaks in the shipment had bags of meth stuffed inside the watertight areas of the boats, according to Tim Fitzgerald, regional director for the Australian Customs and Border Protection Service.
Four of the five people arrested are from Taiwan, and one is from Sydney. Two were charged with attempting to import drugs, and the others were charged with possessing a commercial quantity of drugs. They each face a maximum of life in prison if convicted.
It’s not the first time kayaks have been used to smuggle contraband. Similar busts, though not to the same scale, have occurred along the border between the U.S. and Canada with smugglers using sea kayaks to bring marijuana across the border.
