Drug trafficker pleads guilty to charges, has all assets confiscated

A 28-year-old Russian man, residing in Lithuania, has been jailed for five years and fined €23,000 after he admitted to charges of illicitly importing benzodiazepine and conspiracy to import and traffic heroin.

Dmitrijus Zdorovcevas was arrested at the airport in 2011 after his suitcase was found to have a false bottom containing a suspicious substance.

The accused chose to plead guilty rather than face a trial by jury.

In a move that will doubtless give would-be drug traffickers pause for thought, Judge Antonio Mizzi also ordered the confiscation of all of the accused’s movable and immovable assets in favour of the government.