Airport bungle gives passenger $10,000 in drugs

[panzerfaust]

Source: Sydney Morning Herald

An unsuspecting passenger who flew to Tokyo is carrying one million yen's worth of cannabis compliments of customs authorities after a bungled exercise involving sniffer dogs.

An officer at Narita International Airport yesterday stuffed 142 grams of the drug into the side pocket of a randomly-selected black suitcase coming off an overseas flight so that the animal could detect it.

"The dog couldn't find it and the officer also forgot which bag he put it in," a customs office spokeswoman said...



Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/news/news/airport-gives-passenger-10000-in-drugs/2008/05/27/1211653984557.html

---

Just TRUST us?

And if some OTHER cop found the person with the drugs? What then.

[demnan]

1. That's like the police force in my county.

An officer lost his gun because he laid it on top of his car and took off.

[hedgehog]

19. We had a cop who took the police dog out for a run. The dog took off, the cop

drove around looking for it and ended up running over the dog.




One of those stories where you don't know whether to laugh or cry!

[MikeE]

2. Boy would I be a happy passenger!

I'm sure when they get to the destination it will be party time.

[hobbit709]

3. Evidently we're not the only ones with inept HS

[unpossibles]

4. 142 grams for $10K?!?!?

man...

That is either highly inflated or the Absolute Chronic™ - I'm guessing the former.

[TomInTib]

5. That's what I was thinking

And I thought Humboldt Purple was expensive.

I sure would like to find that suitcase.

[Poll_Blind]

7. From everything I've heard, pot is extremely hard to get in Japan.

  They have severe penalties for drug offenses and Japaense jails...well, Japanese jails are a fearful archetype unto themselves.

PB

[Indenturedebtor]

8. I wouldn't be surprised if the cops didn't have some highly inflated scale

So that they can bust you for more and confiscate more of your possessions. Get busted with a dime bag "He had 8,000 worth of marijuana your honor. I think we should take his car... I like it."

[panzerfaust]

27. No Need: Just Need a Seed

Interestingly, a retired cop friend of mine was just telling me that when an undercover unit in his state would need a particular type of car - say a red corvette - that the word would be passed at morning briefings throughout the state and everybody will pull over red corvettes for any pretext. If they could find any illegal drug, of any amount, in the vehicle it was seized. The amount did not matter, and state law allowed police use of the seized vehicle for one year (after which it was sold at police auction).

He told me that one time he did seize a car (yep, a corvette) when he found a single marijuana seed after the owner agreed to his request to search the vehicle after being stopped for some bogus - but legal - reason.

Couple of things to think about there.

First, to paraphrase what * said about a dictatorship, a Police State is fine - if you ARE the police; Second, even if you think you have done nothing wrong, think twice about allowing an officer to conduct a warrantless search. The guy lost in court, as he had agreed to the search without asking for a warrant or even protesting. He just said "sure", and lost his car.

And that was without the cops even planting anything!

[havocmom]

6. New defense for anybody busted for possession? I just got here from Tokyo!

I flew. Yeah, that's it I flew. Plane ticket? Man, I don't need a plane....

[Andrushka]

9. "Randomly selected" my foot

I doubt he stuck it in a suitcase of a Japanese national.

But if you want really inept Japanese officials (and there are plenty - in fact they have refined bureaucratic ineptness into an art form here in Japan, much like serving tea or arranging flowers), this takes the cake (not sure if it made it to DU):

Kerosene-soaked man becomes human fireball after cretinous coppers give him one last cigarette

NAGOYA -- A man died after turning into a fireball after police supplied him with cigarettes and a lighter and his kerosene-soaked clothes exploded into flames while in a police interrogation room here, police said.

More: http://mdn.mainichi.jp/national/news/20080512p2a00m0na016000c.html

[WhiteTara]

10. wow

that is mind boggling!

[dixiegrrrrl]

13. Darwin award ?

:smoke: :smoke: :smoke: :smoke: :smoke:

[liberal N proud]

11. Flying high with _____________

Insert your favorite airline

[nwliberalkiwi]

24. Favorite Airline

There are no favorite airlines anymore!!!

[UNCLE_Rico]

12. "An exercise in PLANTING EVIDENCE went astray today when ..."

That is all.

[stox]

14. $10,000???

Excuse me, but $10,000 for 149 grams of pot?? Are they confusing the price of pot with the price of cocaine?

[LiberalLovinLug]

16. You're right!

Someone added an extra 0 to make it sound more sensational.

But one thing that's not been raised. Why couldn't they have just dropped on a 'prepared' suitcase of their own? Would have been easier than covertly trying to stuff it into an honest citizens suitcase.

[truthisfreedom]

15. Great way to ruin someone's life.

[RaVeN_MeaD]

17. i need to start going to the airport

[mainer]

18. I'm amazed they admitted this -- it's so stupid.

It makes me wonder how many other times this has happened and they didn't say a word -- and let some poor passenger get busted.

But really, whenever a passenger gets caught with drugs, this is going to be a great defense. "Someone planted it there." Esp. since our luggage is completely out of our control and we're no longer even allowed to lock it.

[Thor_MN]

20. So THAT's why they keep asking me if my bag has been in my possesion.

We are looking for our missing stash of weed, did anyone have a chance to stick it into your bag?

You have to wonder how old it was - it was probably so dried out and old that the dog couldn't smell it anymore.

[Buns_of_Fire]

21. Obviously, the dog was BOUGHT OFF for two packages of Beggin' Strips!

It's BACON!

[Art_from_Ark]

22. That reminds me of that Monty Python sketch

Young Man: Door's open.

Policeman: Oh. Yes. (he enters) All right. All right, all fight, all right. My name's Police Constable Henry Thatcher, and this is a raid. I have reason to believe that there are certain substances on the premises.

Young Man: Well what sort of substances, officer?

Policeman: Er... certain substances.

Young Man: Well, what sort of certain substances?

Policeman: Er, certain substances of an illicit nature.

Young Man: Er, could you be more specific?

Policeman: I beg your pardon?

Young Man: Could you be 'clearer'.

Policeman: Oh, oh ... yes, er ... certain substances on the premises. To be removed for clinical tests.

Young Man: Have you got anything particular in mind?

Policeman: Well what have you got?

Young Man: Nothing, officer.

Policeman: You are Sandy Camp the actor?

Young Man: Yes.

Policeman: I must warn you, sir, that outside I have police dog Josephine, who is not only armed, and trained to sniff out certain substances, but is also a junkie.

Young Man: What are you after ... ?

Policeman: (pulling a brown paper package from out of his pocket, very badly and obviously) Oo! Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh! Here is a brown paper bag I have found on the premises. I must confiscate this, sir, and take it with me for clinical examination.

Young Man: Wait a minute. You just got that out of your pocket.

Policeman: What?

Young Man: (takes it) Well what's in it anyway? (opens it) Sandwiches.

Policeman: Sandwiches? Blimey. Whatever did I give the wife?

[electron_blue]

23. I'm appalled. Why are they putting drugs in passenger's suitcases?

They have a big enough budget to buy their own suitcases, fill them with clothes and then use them to test security. I'd sue bigtime if I found drugs in my suitcase.

[AnneD]

25. I am too....

the scent stays on the bags and I bet it can raise all kinds of red flags. The person is pulled out of line, strip searched. And then, even though they find nothing they put him on a no fly list where he will be getting the cavity search FOREVER. All this because of their incompetence. Colour me shocked.:eyes:

[electron_blue]

26. Now I wonder if they are putting bombs in passengers' bags as a test

You raise good points.

[AnneD]

29. I'll bet you ....

dollars to donuts they have. They might be duds, but the point of training a dog is to get him to recognize the scent and to work in actual settings (finding that scent in a pile of scents-the needle in a haystack). The only 'problem' is that the scent stays for a while and can be picked up in other sites-thus having a slew of unintended consequences.

What maroons:eyes:

[jmowreader]

28. $10,000 for 142 grams of pot is $70.43 per gram

If that's the going rate in Japan, that shows the effectiveness of Japanese drug prohibition: it has made it possible, for those willing to risk very harsh punishment, to live extremely well by peddling just three lids a week.