Guangzhou Customs District announced on March 1 that it seized two cases involving internal concealment of illicit drugs this year. In one case, two passengers who claimed to be a couple conducted “body packing”. On the second and fourth day of custody, the two passengers respectively defecated 47 and 82 capsules of heroin, weighing 601.87g and 978.09g by net weight respectively and 1579.96g in total.

An African ‘couple’ entered into China with a little girl from Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport on January 18. They were suspected of smuggling drugs through internal concealment by Customs officers of Baiyun Airport Customs House, a subordinate Customs office of Guangzhou Customs District. Investigation showed that the couple not only swallowed and concealed a large number of illicit drug capsules, but also used their 2-year-old daughter to distract Customs officers. This is the second illicit drug smuggling case using kids as distraction, after the one uncovered by Guangzhou Customs two years ago.

On January 14, an African male was caught by Baiyun Airport Customs for being suspected of smuggling illicit drugs into China through internal concealment. The male suspect defecated 16 cocaine capsules, weighing 320.85g by net weight.

According to Anti-smuggling Bureau of Guangzhou Customs, to make significant illegal profits, international illicit drug cartels use human body to conceal illicit drugs and hire a lot of ‘mules’ (i.e. people hiding drugs in their bodies) to smuggle illicit drugs. They even use aged people, disabled people, pregnant women and children for smuggling. For instance, in the two illicit drug smuggling cases using children as distraction cracked by Guangzhou Customs in October and November 2015, one of the children was the biological son of the criminal suspect.