A Brazilian couple recently reported missing by their families in Brazil was found sitting in a jail in Lebanon after they tried to enter the country with a kilo of cocaine in their stomachs.

According to Daily Mail, Brazilian nationals Igor dos Santos, 26, and his wife, Juliana Nunes, 31, were arrested at Beirut Rafic Hariri International Airport on December 19 after attempting to smuggle cocaine to Lebanon. 

The Brazilian couple left Guarulhos International Airport in Sao Paulo, Brazil, and boarded a Qatar Airways flight connected to Doha, Qatar.

Dos Santos and Nunes admitted to law enforcement officials in Lebanon that they ingested the cocaine but did not tell who the shipment belonged.

Their families reportedly started to worry when they traveled from Carazinho, Rio Grande do Sul, to Sao Paolo to go shopping on December 13.

The couple, who have been married for nearly two years, arrived in Sao Paulo on December 14 and kept communicating with their families until December 18, 

when they cut off all communications with their loved ones.

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Brazilian Couple Smuggling Cocaine to Lebanon

Igor dos Santos and Juliana Nunes each carried half a kilo or 500 grams of cocaine in their stomachs.

According to reports, Lebanon does not have an extradition agreement with Brazil, which means the Brazilian couple will be incarcerated in the Middle Eastern country if the drug trafficking allegation is proven.

Dos Santos' mother, Claudete dos Santos, told Brazil's RBS TV that her son is a "worker" and not a "bad" person.

Claudete noted that she contacted her son when he was in Sao Paolo, but his wife kept interrupting the communication between them.

According to reports, the Brazilian Embassy in Beirut is already aware of the situation and is currently providing the proper assistance to the Brazilian couple.

Drug Trafficking in Brazil

Around 90% of cocaine seized globally is trafficked by sea, and drug smuggling remains the most frequently committed crime in the national port system in Brazil, according to the International Chamber of Shipping.

Brazil shares an open coastline with the world's three largest cocaine producers: Colombia, Bolivia, and Peru. In June 2022, Brazilian drug kingpin Sergio Roberto de Carvalho was arrested in Hungary after he managed to evade authorities by faking his own death.

Carvalho is accused of smuggling around 45 tons of drugs from Brazil to the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, and Portugal from 2017 to 2021.

Authorities also arrested around 30 people in Brazil and Spain during an international police operation targeting drug trafficking and money laundering operations reportedly connected to Carvalho.

The Brazilian drug kingpin allegedly bought the European private jet company Airjetsul in Portugal for his drug smuggling across Europe, Africa, and Asia.

Carvalho was a Major in Brazil's military until 1997 when he was apprehended and sentenced to 15 years for trafficking cocaine and was freed in 2010.

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This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Mary Webber

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