A 46-year-old man was arrested in north Portugal last May, was thought to be carrying cocaine, but later tests revealed it was just sugar.
Manuel Lourenço Gomes, who lives in Verín, Spain, was in Portugal to visit a friend. He had sugar in the glove compartment of the car because he is diabetic, but was suspected of drug trafficking 'by association' because the friend he was visiting was being investigated for his suspected involvment in drug trafficking network.
In the glove compartment of the vehicle Gomes was driving, a silver-wrapped package containing 39 grams of white powder was found. According to the Jornal de Notícias, "the police carried out a quick test at a local pharmacy to check whether it was cocaine." In the official report of the GNR it can be read that "the substance reacted positively to the narcotic test".
“Months later, analyzes revealed that it was sugar, but the Public Prosecution Service (MP) and the criminal investigation judge of Torre de Moncorvo decided to keep him in prison on suspicion of being part of a trafficking network from Trás-os-Montes”, said Jornal de Notícias.
The man is still in prison.
Source Jornal de Notícias
