Ten suspects were taken into custody recently in a joint operation by Israeli police and the Tax Authority to crackdown on the smuggling of hard drugs into Israel from the United States.
The suspects were placed under arrest after they revealed in interrogation that they have been involved in handling numerous shipments to Israel over the past few months.
In the most recent shipment, the smugglers concealed amphetamines (commonly known as ‘speed’) in ‘Minion’ dolls and Star Wars toys. With more than 6.5 kilos of drugs, the shipment is valued at millions of shekels.
Police and investigators from the Tax Authority managed to locate three in-bound packages at the airport, and trace their intended recipients in Tel Aviv and Ramat HaSharon.
Through interrogations of the intended recipients, police uncovered the remaining members of the smuggling ring, arresting them once enough evidence had been compiled for a case.
The suspects include an employee of a shipping company, who apparently used his position to help transfer the packages. All 10 of the suspects are residents of Tel Aviv and Sharon area, and all are in their 30s.
On Thursday the suspects were brought before a district court in Tel Aviv, which extended the arrests ahead of their indictments.
