A Venezuelan woman who told them her nephew had alerted police to the gang, a weightlifter, had been recruited to smuggle drugs. The woman provided police with information enabling them to trace the alleged recruiter of the gang.
After a four-month investigation, officers followed the man to Buenos Aires international airport where, along with nine other Venezuelans, he was about to get on a flight to Portugal via Brazil.
Police said the men were dressed in tracksuits and claimed to be members of Venezuela‘s Olympic weightlifting team, presumably because they suspected that a large group of young men travelling together on an international flight could arouse the suspicion of customs officers.
Officers put them through a body scan, which revealed all 10 had plastic capsules in their stomachs. Tests performed on the capsules after they had been excreted showed they contained liquid cocaine, said police.
Three Dominicans have also been arrested in the course of raids linked to the investigation.
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reporter
Park Sae-jin
swatchsjp@ajunews.com