BANGKOK: Thai authorities said Wednesday a Bolivian had been charged with drug trafficking after more than five kilograms of cocaine was found hidden in his luggage at Bangkok s main airport.
Jose Alberto Martinez Soto, 45, was arrested at Suvarnabhumi Airport on Tuesday afternoon when authorities discovered the 5.2 kilogram (11.5 pound) haul on his arrival from Sao Paulo via Dubai.
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Airport officials found five plastic bags of white powder hidden in special compartments when they X-rayed his two pieces of luggage, the Thai Customs Department said in a statement released Wednesday.
A test revealed the substance was cocaine with a street value of 20.8 million baht (nearly $580,000), it added.
Soto was handed over to police. He faces a maximum penalty of life imprisonment if convicted of attempted drug smuggling and trafficking, according to an anti-narcotics official.
