Moscow, Dec 21 (IANS/RIA Novosti): Anti-narcotics officials and customs officers in Russia's Far East have seized Chinese drugs hidden in statues of birds.
The smuggling gang was discovered when a courier from Vladivostok tried to send parcels containing 220 grams of synthetic drugs hidden in six packages inside a statue of a crow, a spokesman for the Far Eastern customs department said Friday.
Customs officers found that the suspected drug dealer had bought the drugs in China over the internet and then transported them in bird statues and household appliances to Russia.
The drug dealer and his accomplice face up to 12 years in jail if convicted. In the past year, customs officers in Russia's Far East opened 13 criminal cases against drug traffickers who sent drugs through the mail.
In October, Russian police smashed a gang supplying synthetic narcotics to Russia from China and seized 80 kg of drugs.