A six-year-old British child has reportedly been arrested at an airport alongside a group of adults after 30lbs of drugs was allegedly found in their suitcase.
The child was one of eight arrested after landing at Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam Airport in Plaine Magnien in Mauritius on Sunday, June 22, as customs officers discovered a staggering 161 kilograms (355 lbs) of cannabis concealed throughout several suitcases.
An eye-watering 14 kilograms (30 lbs) alone were hidden in the young boy’s bag, while another 17 kilograms (37 lbs) were found in luggage belonging to another traveler.
The discovery was made as part of a joint operation between the Customs Anti-Narcotics Section (CANS) and the Anti-Drug & Smuggling Unit (ADSU) at the airport, with stunned customs officers also uncovering eleven numbered Apple AirTags among the baggage, suggesting links to an organized crime gang smuggling drugs from Europe into Mauritius.
Authorities described the use of the child as a drug mule as “inhumane,” according to The Sun.
The boy has since returned to the UK after his father flew to Mauritius to collect him on Wednesday, June 25.
The six arrested British adults, all from Cambridgeshire, have been named as Laura Kappen, 28, a bar worker from Orton Goldhay; Shannon Holness, 29, a caterer from Bretton; Shona Campbell, 33, a cleaner from Standground; Lily Watson, a caterer from Peterborough; and Patrick Wilsdon, 21, a window fitter from Peterborough.
Also arrested was 38-year-old Romanian national Florian Lisman, a machine operator living in Huntingdon.
On Monday, June 23, just a day after arriving from London Gatwick, the seven adults appeared in court in Mahébourg and remain in custody as investigations continue.
Shocked relatives in the UK have spoken out, expressing disbelief at the arrests. Carly Wilsdon, mother of suspect Patrick Wilsdon, told The Sun that her son was “vulnerable” and had only traveled abroad once before, suggesting he may have been lured by the promise of a “free holiday” to Mauritius.
“He wouldn't have known what he was doing because he wouldn't get involved in drugs,” she said. “The person who told them about this free holiday is one of his circle of friends but now he has disappeared.”
Experts have previously warned that British citizens are often lured into acting as drug mules under the “lucrative offer” of a free holiday abroad in exchange for smuggling drugs or “mysterious packages” across borders, leading to a string of high-profile arrests overseas.
The case in Mauritius comes shortly after several similar incidents involving British nationals. In May, former air stewardess Charlotte May Lee, 21, was arrested in Sri Lanka after £1.15 million worth of cannabis was allegedly found in her luggage, per the Daily Mail.
Teenager Bella May Culley, 18, was detained in Georgia for allegedly smuggling cannabis after disappearing in Thailand. She faces up to 20 years in prison if found guilty.
A Foreign Office spokesperson has confirmed: “We are supporting several British nationals who are detained in Mauritius and are in contact with the local authorities.”