A Latvian woman fell victim to an online romance scam, believing the instructions of her fake military officer boyfriend and specially flew to Kuala Lumpur to collect what was said to be a “Christmas gift.” She then took a flight to Taiwan to meet him. Unexpectedly, upon entering Taiwan via Taoyuan Airport, customs officers discovered her suitcase contained a hidden stash of 3.63 kilograms of heroin. She was immediately arrested and prosecuted.
The Taipei Customs of Taiwan Customs Administration and the Aviation Police Bureau Security Inspection Team at Taoyuan Airport found abnormalities in the luggage X-ray scan of a 49-year-old Latvian woman (alias Ms. M) last December during a check of Malaysia Airlines flight MH-366 inbound passengers’ checked luggage.
Law enforcement officers opened the suitcase and were shocked to find that it concealed 3.63 kilograms of Category 1 drug heroin.
Zhang Conglong, Captain of the 3rd Team, Criminal Investigation Corps of the Aviation Police Bureau, said that upon her arrest, the suspect told police that she had met a man claiming to be a “military officer” through a messaging app, and the two had quickly fallen in love. The man not only provided her with airfare and accommodation, inviting her to vacation in Taiwan, but also asked her to first fly to Kuala Lumpur to collect a suitcase containing a “Christmas gift,” and give it to him upon her arrival in Taiwan.
It was only when she was intercepted and searched by customs at Taoyuan Airport that the woman realized the supposedly romantic 'Christmas gift' was actually deadly drugs.
Zhang Conglong stated that the seized heroin has a preliminary estimated market value of over 30 million New Taiwan Dollars (about 3.73 million MYR). The entire case has been transferred to the Taoyuan District Prosecutors Office for investigation and prosecution for violation of Taiwan's Narcotics Hazard Prevention Act.
The local Aviation Police also reminded the public that trafficking Category 1 drugs is a serious crime in Taiwan, punishable by the death penalty or life imprisonment, with those given life also facing fines of up to 30 million New Taiwan Dollars. The public is urged not to break the law.