Foreign passenger held after Tk 1.3bn cocaine bust at Dhaka airport

Customs officials in Dhaka have detained a foreign passenger carrying more than 8.6kg of cocaine, valued at about Tk 1.3 billion, at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport.

The passenger, identified as Karen Petula Stuffle, a citizen of Guyana, arrived on a Qatar Airways flight from Doha in the early hours of Tuesday, officials said in a statement.

Acting on a tip-off, customs intelligence officers intercepted her at the airport’s green channel.

A search of her luggage uncovered three plastic jars containing 22 foil-wrapped, egg-shaped packets of cocaine.

Preliminary tests by the Department of Narcotics Control confirmed the substance.

Officials said a case is being filed under criminal and customs laws.