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Twenty-two Sri Lankan monks returning from Thailand were arrested connected Sunday astatine the main planetary airdrome with a grounds 242 pounds of almighty cannabis, officials said.
A Sri Lanka Customs spokesperson said the group, returning location aft a four-day abrogation successful the Thai capital, had Kush -- a potent, plant-based strain of cannabis -- hidden successful their luggage.
"Each carried astir 5 kilos of the narcotic concealed wrong mendacious walls successful their luggage," the spokesperson said, adding that the monks had been handed implicit to police.
They were to beryllium taken earlier a magistrate aboriginal connected Sunday.
The monks were mostly young students from temples crossed Sri Lanka and had been connected a vacation sponsored by a businessman.
Customs officials said it was the largest azygous detection of Kush astatine the South Asian country's main planetary airport.
Sri Lankan monks get to look earlier a tribunal aft their apprehension successful Negombo connected April 26, 2026, aft 22 of them were arrested astatine the airdrome with 242 pounds of almighty cannabis, officials said.
Ishara S. KODIKARA /AFP via Getty Images
Last May, 21-year-old British pistillate was arrested with 101 pounds of the cause astatine the aforesaid airport. The woman, identified as Charlotte May Lee, said she had traveled from Bangkok to Colombo to renew her Thai visa. The BBC reported that she denied cognition of drugs successful her luggage, and claimed they were planted astatine her edifice successful Bangkok.
In June 2025, Sri Lanka's customs authorities arrested a pistillate and seized the largest haul of cocaine ever detected astatine the country's main airport. Officials said the unnamed 38-year-old Thai pistillate was carrying astir 22 pounds of cocaine stuffed into 3 plush toys.
Sri Lankan authorities person besides made respective detections of ample hauls of heroin and different narcotics smuggled successful via tiny sportfishing boats successful caller years.
The latest arrests aren't the archetypal clip monks person tally afoul of cause laws.
In 2022, each azygous monk astatine a Buddhist temple successful cardinal Thailand was defrocked aft they tested positive for methamphetamine. The monks were sent to a wellness session to acquisition cause rehabilitation.
In 2017, constabulary said a Buddhist monk was arrested successful Myanmar aft authorities recovered much than 4 cardinal meth pills successful his car and successful his monastery.
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