5 Of The Craziest Ways That People Have Been Caught Smuggling Drugs

Published May 23, 2017
Updated May 4, 2018

Orally

Craziest Ways Drugs Smuggled Mouth

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Oft referred to as a “swallower” or “internal carrier,” one of the most popular and craziest ways to transport drugs is in the mouth.

A carrier might numb their throat and swallow drug-filled condoms or gloves and then remove them naturally, or sometimes with the help of laxatives.

“Body packers can carry up to two hundred packs on each trip, with each pack containing between two and fifty grams of a substance,” Dr. Fernando Caudevilla, who specializes in the effects of drugs, told VICE.

“The packets are also often wrapped in yellowish latex tubes, between one and two inches long. When someone is caught through radiography at customs, they usually show no symptoms of having taken the drugs. In that case, they will be given laxatives to pass the pellets. A drug wrapper breaks rarely—less than one to three percent of the time.”

author
All That's Interesting
author
A New York-based publisher established in 2010, All That's Interesting brings together subject-level experts in history, true crime, and science to share stories that illuminate our world.
editor
John Kuroski
editor
John Kuroski is the editorial director of All That's Interesting. He graduated from New York University with a degree in history, earning a place in the Phi Alpha Theta honor society for history students. An editor at All That's Interesting since 2015, his areas of interest include modern history and true crime.