Insufficient evidence to charge four flight attendants for drug transport

On March 22, the Ho Chi Minh City Police announced that they had initiated criminal proceedings in the case of transporting over 11kg of drugs from France to Tan Son Nhat Airport.
A suitcase of a flight attendant at the time Tan Son Nhat Airport Customs carry out checks. (Photo: SGGP)

A suitcase of a flight attendant at the time Tan Son Nhat Airport Customs carry out checks. (Photo: SGGP)

The police will investigate and determine the nature of the case and take appropriate actions against those found guilty of drug trafficking. The charges include illegal transportation of narcotics, and the police will strictly follow regulations to ensure that all individuals involved are held accountable for their actions.

On March 16, during a routine cargo screening at Tan Son Nhat International Airport, the airport customs discovered a suspicious shipment weighing around 60kg, consisting of four suitcases belonging to flight attendants Tran Thi Thu N., Vo Tu Q., Nguyen Thanh T., and Dang Phuong V. Upon inspection, the authorities found 327 tubes of unopened toothpaste under various brands and each tube was individually packaged in a paper box and 17 bottles of oral rinse. Further investigation revealed that 157 of the toothpaste tubes contained a total of 11,284.57 grams of ketamine and MDMA.

On March 17, the Tan Son Nhat Airport Customs Branch handed over documents and evidence related to the case to the Police Investigation Agency of HCMC Police for further investigation. On March 21, authorities held a meeting to comprehensively evaluate the collected documents and evidence and compare them with the provisions of the law.

Drugs are hidden inside toothpaste tubes. (Photo: SGGP)

Drugs are hidden inside toothpaste tubes. (Photo: SGGP)

Based on their investigation, the HCMC Police found that while the four flight attendants were in France, a Vietnamese individual asked them to transport 327 tubes of toothpaste and 17 bottles of oral rinse to Vietnam for his relative. The flight attendants were unaware that 157 of the toothpaste tubes had drugs hidden inside by that individual. Therefore, the HCMC Police Department has determined that there is insufficient evidence to pursue criminal charges against these four flight attendants.

On March 22, the HCMC Police Department decided to release these four flight attendants.

At present, the Police Investigation Agency of the HCMC Police Department has filed a criminal case of illegal transportation of narcotics to investigate, determine the nature of the case, and strictly handle those involved in accordance with the law.

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