Australian senior citizens win free trip to Canada, become drug mules
- 11 years ago
An elderly Australian couple from Perth are believed to have unwittingly become a pair of drug mules for Canadian drug traffickers earlier this month after entering an online contest to win an all-expense paid trip to British Columbia, according to the Australian.
The 64-year-old woman, called Sue, and her 72-year-old husband, entered an online contest hosted by a phony travel company calling itself AusCan Tours. The couple were contacted by the scammers and told they had won two return tickets from Perth, seven nights in a hotel and brand, new luggage. The couple went to North America, and according to Sue, had a lovely holiday, but when they returned to Australia, they became suspicious of their bags; Sue though they seemed a bit heavier.
The couple went straight to customs to report their suspicions and officers found 3.5 kilograms of methamphetamine hidden in the lining of each bag, a stash worth about $6.7 million (7 million Australian dollars).
A man was scheduled to meet the couple, which led the Australian Federal Police to get a search warrant to inspect a hotel room in Scarborough. There, agents uncovered documents, suitcases similar to the ones given to the couple, as well as almost $15,000 in cash. A 38-year-old Canadian man was arrested at the airport that day in connection to the scam and charged with drug-related offenses.
The Australian Federal Police believe the suitcases were swapped out in Canada.
--------------------------------------------------------
TomoNews is your daily source for top animated news. We've combined animation and video footage with a snarky personality to bring you the biggest and best stories from around the world.
For news that's fun and never boring, visit our channel:
https://www.youtube.com/user/TomoNewsUS
Subscribe to stay updated on all the top stories:
http://www.youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=TomoNewsUS
Stay connected with us here:
Facebook http://www.facebook.com/TomoNewsUS
Twitter @tomonewsus http://www.twitter.com/TomoNewsUS
Google+ http://gplus.to/TomoNewsUS
The 64-year-old woman, called Sue, and her 72-year-old husband, entered an online contest hosted by a phony travel company calling itself AusCan Tours. The couple were contacted by the scammers and told they had won two return tickets from Perth, seven nights in a hotel and brand, new luggage. The couple went to North America, and according to Sue, had a lovely holiday, but when they returned to Australia, they became suspicious of their bags; Sue though they seemed a bit heavier.
The couple went straight to customs to report their suspicions and officers found 3.5 kilograms of methamphetamine hidden in the lining of each bag, a stash worth about $6.7 million (7 million Australian dollars).
A man was scheduled to meet the couple, which led the Australian Federal Police to get a search warrant to inspect a hotel room in Scarborough. There, agents uncovered documents, suitcases similar to the ones given to the couple, as well as almost $15,000 in cash. A 38-year-old Canadian man was arrested at the airport that day in connection to the scam and charged with drug-related offenses.
The Australian Federal Police believe the suitcases were swapped out in Canada.
--------------------------------------------------------
TomoNews is your daily source for top animated news. We've combined animation and video footage with a snarky personality to bring you the biggest and best stories from around the world.
For news that's fun and never boring, visit our channel:
https://www.youtube.com/user/TomoNewsUS
Subscribe to stay updated on all the top stories:
http://www.youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=TomoNewsUS
Stay connected with us here:
Facebook http://www.facebook.com/TomoNewsUS
Twitter @tomonewsus http://www.twitter.com/TomoNewsUS
Google+ http://gplus.to/TomoNewsUS