By Seth Brandle | Echo News
One of the largest drug smuggling attempts in Lebanese history was thwarted by authorities at the Beirut airport, and it allegedly involved a Saudi prince. Officials in Lebanon said that five Saudis were detained at Beirut-Rafic Hariri International Airport for attempting to smuggle two tons of pills hidden in boxes and suitcases out of Lebanon to Saudi Arabia.The pills were labelled as Captogen, the brand name of a drug that has not been in production since the 1980s. However, the brand has since been counterfeited and used to mark narcotics. The pills are very popular throughout the Middle East, and contains amphetamines, which provides a mood-altering stimulant that is highly addictive. These drugs are also illegal throughout the Middle East, including Saudi Arabia and Lebanon.
The Saudi government is trying to remove the princes from any trial taking place in Lebanon. Al-Manar News reported that Saudi Arabia's Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Fawwaz Al-Shaalan met with Lebanese Interior Minister Nuhad al-Machnouk in order to work out an arrangement to accomplish this.
This is not the first incident in which a Saudi prince has gotten in trouble with the law in a foreign nation. In October, Majed Abdulaziz Al-Saud faced new allegations of sexual assault by three female housekeepers who worked at his Beverly Hills, California, mansion. Previous complaints about the incident were filed with the District Attorney's office, but prosecutors did not pursue the case due to "lack of evidence."
However, after these most recent allegations, charges were pressed by Lebanon and Al-Saud was released on a $300,000 bail. While many foreign nationals try to claim diplomatic immunity to escape any prosecution, authorities in Los Angeles have said that the immunity would not apply to Al-Saud in this case.
Although both of these cases still have to go through their respective country's legal processes, it is clear that with a royal family containing over 7,000 princes, it is difficult for the nation of Saudi Arabia to maintain control over the criminal actions of their princes when they travel across the globe.
