John Kennedy dos Santos Gurjao suffered an overdose after a package thought to contain cocaine burst inside his stomach on a flight from the Portuguese capital Lisbon to Dublin.
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Garda technical team pictured during the examination of an Aer Lingus at Cork Airport on which the 24-year old man died.
Presenting the most horrifying news I’ve heard all day: A man died on board an worldwide flight after a pellet allegedly containing drugs burst inside of him.
Officials found that John Kennedy Santos Gurjau had ingested 80 wrapped pellets of cocaine.
The flight had been diverted to Cork after Santos Gurjao became distressed.
If toxicology results confirm authorities’ suspicions of cocaine, the estimated street value of the drugs in Santos Gurjao’s stomach is €56,000, or about $64,000.
Forensic analysis carried out at the state laboratory confirmed that the woman’s claim that the powder was not an illegal substance, but was in fact baking powder.
The 24-year-old’s niece, Carolina Gurjao, said that she had been very close to her uncle – and that he was “one of the best people in the world”.
A 44-year-old woman on board the plane was subsequently arrested by Gardai under drugs trafficking legislation.
Two nurses and a doctor travelling on the plane had tried to resuscitate the Brazilian man after the captain appealed for help, witnesses told Irish media. It is believed the man became agitated during the flight, leading him to be restrained, but not before biting a Portuguese man.
“It’s not something you’d hear everyday”.
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The bitten passenger was admitted to a Cork hospital, while the other 165 passengers and six crew members traveled by bus to Dublin. “He was actually on the ground shaking violently”, he said.
