SANTIAGO, Feb. 5 (Xinhua) -- Chilean authorities have arrested three foreigners, including a U.S. citizen, for smuggling a vast cache of the synthetic drug ecstasy, the National Customs Service said on Tuesday.
The three suspects, including a Spanish and a Swiss citizen, were caught trying to bring in 27,000 tablets of the drug also known as MDMA. The cache has a street value of 624,000 U.S. dollars.
Customs officials at the airport in the capital Santiago discovered the drugs hidden in a suitcase with a false bottom, said Patricio Gonzalez, head of the customs service drugs unit.
The suspects have no prior criminal record and were in Chile on tourist visas, he added.
According to authorities, the American landed in Santiago Tuesday morning from London, and delivered the more than 10-kilo cache to the other two, who were already in Chile.
Gonzalez said customs officials have discovered drugs hidden in a variety of objects, including toys and books, but false-bottom luggage is unusual.
