The police also seized 323kg of drugs, two guns, 67 bullets, and three grenades in the process.

They said they have also established evidence linking the detained individuals to drug transactions amounting to more than VND28 trillion.

The suspects had successfully transported six shipments containing drugs through Hanoi’s Noi Bai International Airport using similar tricks. They had sent them via domestic express delivery services to Ho Chi Minh City for distribution and consumption.

During investigations, the police busted the entire criminal network, detained the masterminds behind the ring, and released four female flight attendants who were exploited by criminals.

On March 16, 2023, Tan Son Nhat Airport Customs Branch, in collaboration with other units, inspected the luggage of four Vietnam Airlines flight attendants returning from Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport to Tan Son Nhat Airport on flight VN10. They subsequently discovered 327 tubes of toothpaste and 17 bottles of mouthwash containing 11.4 kg of ecstasy and synthetic drugs, including 8,400 grams of gray tablets and 3,080 grams of white powder.

The four flight attendants confessed that they had been asked by an anonymous person in France to transport the items for over VND10 million. They only checked a few tubes and, when they found nothing unusual, agreed to transport them.

A week later, the Ho Chi Minh City Police Department released the flight attendants and decided to prosecute the case of “illegal transportation of drugs”. The flight attendants were found to have been exploited to unknowingly transport the drugs.