Suspect arrested for smuggling cannabis in Valentine Day's teddy bears

By EREZ HAREL

Published: FEBRUARY 16, 2024 08:09

What alerted the forces were the Valentine's Day teddy bear dolls that were in his luggage and were particularly unusual in weight. (photo credit: INGIMAGE) — What alerted the forces were the Valentine's Day teddy bear dolls that were in his luggage and were particularly unusual in weight.

(photo credit: INGIMAGE)

What alerted the forces were the Valentine's Day teddy bears that were in his luggage and were particularly heavy.

Forces of the Special Detective Unit 747 along with custom inspectors at Ben-Gurion Airport thwarted earlier this week the smuggling of Cannabis seeds into Israel via Valentine's Day teddy bears and arrested a resident of Netanya suspected of importing them.

The suspect, in his 20s, landed in Israel and was arrested by the forces and the customs inspectors of the passenger hall at Ben-Gurion Airport.

Teddy bears' unusual weight

What alerted the forces were the Valentine's Day teddy bear dolls that were in his luggage and were particularly heavy.

After a careful search of the teddy bears, it was discovered they contained material suspected to be cannabis seeds weighing about eight kilograms. The seeds were transferred for further extraction of evidence in Israel Police's forensic laboratories.

A view of the empty departure hall at Ben-Gurion Airport in November. (credit: YOSSI ALONI/FLASH90)

The police detained the suspect for questioning at the end of which he was jailed.

He was brought to a hearing at court on Thursday, where his detention was extended until Tuesday, in accordance with the needs of the investigation and its findings.