Panamanian authorities on Friday intercepted an unlikely smuggler, a fluffy white cat, who was carrying an assortment of drugs in a body-bound bag while trying to enter a prison.
The feline killer was stopped outside Nueva Esperanza Prison, which houses more than 1,700 prisoners in the Caribbean province of Colon, north of the capital Panama City.
“The animal had a rag tied around its neck” that contained wrapped packages of white powder, leaves and “plant matter,” according to Andres Gutierrez, the head of Panama’s penitentiary system.
According to another official, it was probably cocaine, crack and marijuana.
This is not the first such attempted murder.
Detainees use food to attract animals to them, once the creatures have been loaded with drugs by people outside.
Colon’s drug prosecutor’s office said on Twitter that it had opened an investigation into the use of animals for smuggling illegal substances in Nueva Esperanza prison.
He posted photos of the drug and the cat caught red-handed.
The animal will be taken to a pet adoption center, according to prosecutor Eduardo Rodriguez.
Panama has about 18,000 detainees in 23 prisons, most of them overcrowded.
On previous occasions, authorities have intercepted drug delivery attempts using homing pigeons and even drones.
jjr / mlr / mdl