A 91-year-old Sydney man has been charged with trafficking cocaine hidden in soap.
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Twartz was returning to Australia from New Delhi on July 8 when he was allegedly caught carrying 27 bars of soap, filled with about 4.5kg of cocaine.
Australian Federal Police were called in when a search of his luggage uncovered 27 packets of soap which tested positive for cocaine.
A 91-year-old Sydney man has been charged with importing cocaine after he apparently fell victim to a scam.
“There is certainly some evidence to suggest this man was legitimately scammed by this group and exploited”, David Stewart, organised crime commander of the Australian Federal Police said.
Police say it appears that Mr Twartz was conned by a group of people he had befriended online before his trip.
He told ABC he was given the bag just before he left the country and was told it was a gift for a person in Australia.
“People can expect they will be charged if they knowingly bring drugs into Australia, or are reckless or willfully blind to the fact that there could be narcotics concealed inside their luggage or items they are carrying”, Mr Buchhorn said in a statement.
AFP have warned against scams which can lead to people being duped by overseas drug syndicates into becoming drug couriers.
‘Luggage is a personal responsibility, ‘ he said. “If you’ve been asked to carry something on behalf of another person, be sure you know exactly what is inside”, he said.
Twartz appeared briefly at Downing Centre Local Court on Tuesday, dressed in a three-piece tweed suit.
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Ola Mae Agee, who was imprisoned aged 87 for dealing crack from her house in Florida in 2010, has previously been labelled the world’s oldest drug dealer.
