Belgian driver declares 117 kg of cannabis at German border, gets arrested
A Belgian driver attempted to cross into Germany with 117 kilograms of marijuana by presenting a transit document that openly listed his cargo as 'dried hemp flowers'. The honest approach did not spare him from arrest.
A strange declaration
In mid-June 2026, a Belgian driver arrived at the Bietingen customs office on the German side of the Swiss border, driving a van with Dutch licence plates. He handed over a transit document for a shipment from Switzerland to the Czech Republic. The paperwork listed the goods as "Dried Hemp Flowers", a term customs officers quickly recognised as cannabis.
In principle, the import, export and transit of cannabis into or through Germany is prohibited.
What officers found
A search of the vehicle revealed 17 cardboard boxes containing 115 vacuum-sealed plastic bags. The total weight of the marijuana was approximately 117 kilograms. The drugs had arrived at Zurich airport from the United States and were bound for a recipient in the Czech Republic.
How it reached Switzerland
It remains unclear how the shipment entered Switzerland without detection. The Swiss Federal Customs Administration had not intercepted it, and the driver could offer no explanation. Once in Swiss territory, the cargo travelled by road to the Thayngen/Bietingen border crossing.
No authorisation, no defence
German law allows cannabis transit only for proven medical purposes. The driver could not produce any such authorisation. The drugs were seized immediately, the driver was arrested and criminal proceedings for violation of the Narcotics Act were opened against him.
