Twenty-two Buddhist monks are in Sri Lankan police custody after customs officials discovered 110kg of high-grade cannabis concealed in their luggage at Colombo’s main international airport. The haul, valued at 1.1bn rupees (£2.5m), represents the largest single detection of the drug at the facility.
The monks, mostly junior trainees from temples across Sri Lanka, had returned from a four-day holiday in Bangkok on Saturday. A customs spokesperson said they allegedly hid about 5kg of ‘kush’, a potent cannabis strain, in false walls within their luggage. Video footage posted on social media showed the monks covering their faces with their robes at the airport.
The men were handed over to police and appeared before a magistrate on Sunday. Local reports indicate the trip was sponsored, and photographs on their phones showed the group enjoying the holiday in lay clothing.
A 23rd monk, believed to have organised the trip, was arrested in a Colombo suburb. According to police, he told the other monks the parcels were a donation and that a van would collect them. The BBC reported this on its Sinhalese service.
