Customs Seizes 159kg of Hashish

The Luxembourg Customs Administration has seized 159kg of hashish during vehicle checks.

Last week, officials from the anti-drug inspection of the Customs Administration managed another success in the fight against drug smuggling in Luxembourg.

As part of an applied risk analysis on the movement of various profiles of internationally-operating gangs, the investigators carried out customs checks at different locations and at different times. During these checks, they stopped a car with a Dutch registration plate for closer inspection.

Using dense commuter traffic, which makes it extremely difficult for the authorities to inspect, the older driver of the car had been transporting his illegal cargo across Luxembourg territory. When stopped, the inspectors spotted luggage on the back seat, colloquially referred to as "valises marocaines" (Moroccan suitcases) and internationally popular for hashish smuggling, which hinted straight away that the officials had found a smuggler; this was later confirmed.

Both the car boot, as well as specially built hiding places in the car, were filled with hashish plates. In total, 159.8kg of the substance was found. The driver stated that the narcotics should be brought from the Netherlands to France. The confiscated goods would have a street sale value of approximately €1,300,000 in Luxembourg. On this scale smuggling narcotics is directly linked to organised crime.

The smuggler was arrested by order of the prosecutor and presented to the examining magistrate. The drugs, mobile phones and the vehicle were confiscated.