Girl, 13, arrested for drug smuggling
A 13-year-old girl arrested at Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport for drug smuggling is the youngest person ever taken into custody at the airport for the crime. The Marechaussee, a military police force that handles security at the airport, found approximately 80 grams of cocaine wrapped in a small package inside her body.
The girl lives in Willemstad, Curacao, and she was traveling from the Caribbean with an 18-year-old youth, who police released because he was not carrying drugs. Every passenger on the flight was screened for security upon arrival.
Two Marechaussee agents on patrol at Schiphol (photo courtesy Marechaussee)
"We are very, very shocked," Marechaussee spokesman Robert van Kapel told Het Paroool. "We have never had such a young drug smuggler at Schiphol. It is sad that such a young girl is drug trafficking, so we want to proceed carefully."
After an initial screening by Customs officials, she was identified as a suspect for a more thorough search procedure. Upon discovery of the cocaine, she was arrested and turned over to Dutch police officers.
"In addition to the inquiry carried out by the drug control investigative unit the youth and morality team of the Marechaussee will take care of the suspect," the Marechaussee said in a statement. Child welfare services have also been involved in the case.
The public prosecutor in Noord-Holland will handle the case.
-with reporting by M. Nadeem
