Cocaine mule arrested at Walvis

AN Angolan woman was arrested at Walvis Bay International Airport last week with 95 capsules of cocaine, Police said yesterday.

The woman had swallowed 50 of the capsules while the other 45 capsules were hidden in her luggage. The drugs were valued at N$600 000. The woman was identified as 32-year-old Irene da Costa, who boarded a plane at Walvis Bay to Johannesburg on May 19 en route to Brazil.She returned via the same route, arriving at Walvis Bay on May 27, where she was detained by Police and her luggage searched, said Erongo Police spokesperson Julia Nujoma. Upon her arrest, Da Costa was taken to the Walvis Bay State Hospital, where she was given laxatives to expel the 50 cocaine capsules she’d swallowed. She spent two days in hospital before appearing in the Walvis Bay Magistrates’ Court this week on a charge of drug possession and attempted smuggling.The case was postponed to June 9 for further investigation, and she was not granted bail.Nujoma said Police were aware of Da Costa’s ‘suspect’ travel arrangements, which prompted an investigation and her arrest. Cocaine-filled capsules are dangerous since they can easily burst in the stomach and cause the smuggler (or ‘mule’) to suffer a fatal overdose.adam@namibian.com.na