Man from New Zealand busted at airport for possession of heroin
Central News Agency
2016-03-02 06:09 PM
Taipei, March 2 (CNA) A New Zealand national was arrested at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport on Monday after he was found attempting to smuggle heroin into the country, the Taipei branch of the Customs Administration said Wednesday.
The man arrived at the airport from Incheon, South Korea, on a Korean Air flight on Feb. 29, and when his backpack was checked at customs, a package of white powder weighing 2,724 grams was found hidden between two layers of the backpack.
The parcel was wrapped in several layers of craft paper, a sheet of carbon paper and a foam wrapper, the Taipei customs office said, noting that the powder was later identified as heroin.
The man, who was not identified, was taken to the Taoyuan office of the Ministry of Justice's Investigation Bureau to be investigated, according to the Taipei customs office.
The office said a kilogram of heroin can be used by 100,000 people and pose a great deal of harm to human health.
Under Taiwan's Narcotics Hazard Prevention Act, heroin is listed as a Category One narcotic in the four-category classification system that was established based on a substance's ability to cause addiction, be abused and pose a danger to society.
Those manufacturing, transporting, or selling Category One narcotics are subject to life imprisonment or the death penalty. Those sentenced to life imprisonment are also subject to a fine of up to NT$20 million (US$603,800). (By Chiu Chun-chin and Elizabeth Hsu)
