Seven Schiphol employees arrested for drug smuggling through the airport

The Koninklijke Marechaussee arrested seven people, all working at Schiphol Airport, for involvement in international drug smuggling through the airport. The arrests follow the discovery of shipments of hard drugs by local authorities in Asia in June, the Marechaussee said on Wednesday.

“The drugs were found in boxes in the cargo hold of aircraft from Schiphol, weighing several tens of kilograms per shipment,” said the Koninklijke Marechaussee, a policing force that works as part of the Dutch military and is responsible for airport security.

The Marechaussee launched an investigation, leading to the seven suspects’ arrests and the interception of five drug shipments, four in Asia and one in October at Schiphol itself.

“The suspects are suspected of playing various roles in the smuggling process, ranging from transporting the drugs to the airport to facilitating the placing of the drugs in the cargo hold of the planes,” the Marechaussee said. The investigation is ongoing, and more arrests may follow.