This might have been a “hair-brained” scheme. It certainly was a hair-raising incident.
Police in Colombia arrested a man at an airport for attempting to smuggle cocaine worth thousands under his toupee, officials announced on Monday.
The drugs were discovered by authorities after the 40-year-old man attempted to board a plane to Amsterdam at Rafael Nunez International Airport in Cartagena, SkyNews reported. The incident happened on Feb. 20, according to the BBC.
The incident was not swept under the rug, so to speak. Authorities released video footage showing an officer using scissors to cut through the wig that was covering the suspect’s shaved head, ITV reported. Police discovered 19 capsules of the drug, which weighed 220 grams, according to SkyNews.
Man caught with $10,000 worth of cocaine under toupee in Columbiahttps://t.co/9MqQ4AZVBb pic.twitter.com/wDzbWQDQFK
— ITV News (@itvnews) February 25, 2025
“This individual is profiled by one of our experts and subjected to the procedure,” Gelver Yecid Pena Araque, of the Metropolitan Police of Cartagena, said in a statement translated by Reuters. “There, through the scanner and a body search, the wig was found, which contained more than 220 grams of cocaine that he intended to take to (Amsterdam) and with this, criminal profits got hit.”
The man was arrested and charged with manufacturing and carrying narcotic substances and suspicion of trafficking, USA Today reported.
Police said the cocaine had a street value of approximately $10,500, according to the newspaper.
Officials added that the suspect had a criminal record that included two convictions for drug trafficking, The Associated Press reported.
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