Man finds cocaine in car bought from customs

A German man who bought a car from customs authorities found ten kilos of cocaine inside one of the doors.

A German man who bought a car from customs authorities found ten kilos of cocaine inside one of the doors.

Rüdiger Nagel, 41, bought the Chevrolet Suburban after it had been in Hamburg for several years.

It had been shipped there from Mexico and confiscated in 1997 when authorities found 54 kilos of cocaine hidden in the petrol tank and the spare tyre.

But an extra ten kilos stashed away in the rear of the car went unnoticed.

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Nagel found the hidden drugs when he took off one of the back door handles because it wasn't working properly, the Hamburger Morgenpost reports.

Inside the car, he found eleven packages of cocaine, wrapped in shreds of a Mexican newspaper from October 1997.

He reported the find to customs, who admitted overlooking the drugs.

"After all, customs staff are only human, too," spokesman Robert Duetsch defended his colleagues.

Nagel eventually got the car back when authorities were sure no more drugs were hidden in it.

"I promised them I'd call again if I found any more," he told the paper.

PA