A 63-year-old woman was stopped with nearly 20,000 erectile dysfunction pills in her flight baggage. Suspicions were raised when her suitcase went through the X-ray scanner at her destination airport. Officials were stunned when they unzipped the case and found it full to the brim with blue pills.
Each had a diamond-shaped inscription reading “sildenafil citrate” – an active ingredient used to treat erectile dysfunction. The bust happened at Alicante-Elche Airport, according to Spain’s Civil Guard. The flight had arrived from Madrid, where the passenger had transited after landing from the Dominican Republic.
A total of 19,944 pills were seized from her luggage by the Civil Guard and the Tax Authority. The woman did not have any documentation to justify possessing or transporting the drugs. She was arrested on suspicion of crimes against public health and smuggling.
Judges decided to release her on bail. The pills were sent to a lab, where they will be analysed to find out if they are counterfeit or altered.
The Civil Guard warned travellers: “When travelling with medication, it’s essential to carry the relevant prescription or medical report. Additionally, the allowed quantities must be enough only for the duration of the treatment, or at most, for three months.”
The haul isn’t the strangest thing customs officers have found in flyers’ baggage. In March last year, an African “witch doctor” was caught at Dubai Airport, UAE, with a live snake, a dead bird, and a monkey’s hand hidden among his belongings.
And in February 2024, 48 live animals – including two Komodo dragons and six deadly snakes – were found in a Mongolian man’s luggage at Bangkok Airport, Thailand.