{"id":202718,"date":"2026-09-07T17:19:41","date_gmt":"2026-09-07T14:19:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/202718\/"},"modified":"2026-09-07T17:19:42","modified_gmt":"2026-09-07T14:19:42","slug":"belarus-charges-austrian-man-in-cocaine-smuggling-case","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/202718\/","title":{"rendered":"Belarus charges Austrian man in cocaine smuggling case"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\n\n \"\"\n
\n \n
\n (State Customs Committee)<\/span>\n <\/div>\n <\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

September 7, Pozirk.<\/em> <\/strong>Belarusian authorities have opened a criminal case against a 35-year-old Austrian man accused of attempting to smuggle cocaine into Belarus while travelling by bus from Lithuania, the State Customs Committee reports.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The incident took place at the Kamienny \u0141oh-Medininkai border crossing. The suspect did not declare any prohibited goods, yet a service dog alerted officials, who found \u201ctwo plastic packets containing a compressed white substance\u201d concealed in a package of candy. The substance was later confirmed to be cocaine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The man was charged with the illegal trafficking and cross-border transportation of drugs and may face up to 10 years in prison if convicted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Belarus has some of the strictest drug laws in Europe and enforces them rigorously. Foreign nationals have been arrested and prosecuted for possessing even small quantities of controlled substances, including medications or drugs that may be legal, decriminalized, or subject to lighter penalties in other European countries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a result, travelers should not assume that laws or enforcement practices elsewhere in Europe apply in Belarus and should carefully verify the legal status of any medication or substance before entering the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

September 7, Pozirk. Belarusian authorities have opened a criminal case against a 35-year-old Austrian man accused of attempting to smuggle cocaine into Belarus while travelling by bus from Lithuania, the State Customs Committee reports. The incident took place at the Kamienny \u0141oh-Medininkai border crossing. The suspect did not declare any prohibited goods, yet a service […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":83,"featured_media":202699,"template":"","rubric":[15],"class_list":["post-202718","articles","type-articles","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","rubric-society"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nBelarus charges Austrian man in cocaine smuggling case | Pozirk<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"September 7, Pozirk. Belarusian authorities have opened a criminal case against a 35-year-old Austrian man accused of attempting to smuggle cocaine into\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/202718\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Belarus charges Austrian man in cocaine smuggling case | Pozirk\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"September 7, Pozirk. Belarusian authorities have opened a criminal case against a 35-year-old Austrian man accused of attempting to smuggle cocaine into\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/202718\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Pozirk\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/pozirkonline\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-09-07T14:19:42+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/narkotiki_tamozhnia.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1000\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"667\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@Pozirk_online\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"NewsArticle\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/202718\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/202718\/\"},\"headline\":\"Belarus charges Austrian man in cocaine smuggling case\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-09-07T14:19:41+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-09-07T14:19:42+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/202718\/\"},\"wordCount\":193,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/202718\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/narkotiki_tamozhnia.jpg\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/202718\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/202718\/\",\"name\":\"Belarus charges Austrian man in cocaine smuggling case | Pozirk\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/202718\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/202718\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/narkotiki_tamozhnia.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-09-07T14:19:41+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-09-07T14:19:42+00:00\",\"description\":\"September 7, Pozirk. Belarusian authorities have opened a criminal case against a 35-year-old Austrian man accused of attempting to smuggle cocaine into\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/202718\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/202718\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/202718\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/narkotiki_tamozhnia.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/narkotiki_tamozhnia.jpg\",\"width\":1000,\"height\":667},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/202718\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Belarus charges Austrian man in cocaine smuggling case\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/\",\"name\":\"Pozirk\",\"description\":\"\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Pozirk\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/cropped-Logo_color_512.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/cropped-Logo_color_512.png\",\"width\":512,\"height\":512,\"caption\":\"Pozirk\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/pozirkonline\/\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/Pozirk_online\"]}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Belarus charges Austrian man in cocaine smuggling case | Pozirk","description":"September 7, Pozirk. Belarusian authorities have opened a criminal case against a 35-year-old Austrian man accused of attempting to smuggle cocaine into","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/202718\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Belarus charges Austrian man in cocaine smuggling case | Pozirk","og_description":"September 7, Pozirk. Belarusian authorities have opened a criminal case against a 35-year-old Austrian man accused of attempting to smuggle cocaine into","og_url":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/202718\/","og_site_name":"Pozirk","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/pozirkonline\/","article_modified_time":"2026-09-07T14:19:42+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1000,"height":667,"url":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/narkotiki_tamozhnia.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_site":"@Pozirk_online","twitter_misc":{"Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/202718\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/202718\/"},"headline":"Belarus charges Austrian man in cocaine smuggling case","datePublished":"2026-09-07T14:19:41+00:00","dateModified":"2026-09-07T14:19:42+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/202718\/"},"wordCount":193,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/202718\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/narkotiki_tamozhnia.jpg","inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/202718\/","url":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/202718\/","name":"Belarus charges Austrian man in cocaine smuggling case | Pozirk","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/202718\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/202718\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/narkotiki_tamozhnia.jpg","datePublished":"2026-09-07T14:19:41+00:00","dateModified":"2026-09-07T14:19:42+00:00","description":"September 7, Pozirk. Belarusian authorities have opened a criminal case against a 35-year-old Austrian man accused of attempting to smuggle cocaine into","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/202718\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/202718\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/202718\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/narkotiki_tamozhnia.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/narkotiki_tamozhnia.jpg","width":1000,"height":667},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/202718\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Belarus charges Austrian man in cocaine smuggling case"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#website","url":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/","name":"Pozirk","description":"","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#organization","name":"Pozirk","url":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/cropped-Logo_color_512.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/cropped-Logo_color_512.png","width":512,"height":512,"caption":"Pozirk"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/pozirkonline\/","https:\/\/x.com\/Pozirk_online"]}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/articles\/202718","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/articles"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/articles"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/83"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/202699"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=202718"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"rubric","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rubric?post=202718"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}