The drug involved was crystal methamphetamine. And what can you do with crystals? Sculpt them. And that is exactly what 28-year-old Hossain Safizadeh stands accused of doing by the Thai police
The crystal meth—all $1.6 million worth of it—was disguised as handicraft art. One 10-kilo object was cast as a rose. The smaller five-kilo artwork was done as a framed cameo.
The Thai Customs Department declined to say what made them suspicious and led them to detain Safizadeh when he arrived at Bangkok’s airport. But it did say it was the first time customs officers had ever come across that ploy.
Imaginative Iranian drug smugglers have been caught in increasing numbers this past year in Asia, especially in Thailand and Indonesia. They have pressed drugs into the handles of their suitcases. One man had his peg leg filled with drugs. And a group of women wearing chadors were caught with drugs stuffed into their bras.
There was no word, unfortunately, on the quality of the latest handicraft work. But this does have the possibility of opening up a whole new realm of artistic achievement.