Mules: the weakest link in the drug trade

In drug trafficking, mules, sometimes pregnant women, are replaceable containers.

Known as mules, they transport narcotics from one country to another by increasingly from one country to another using increasingly ingenious and varied methods: in hidden compartments in suitcases, in footwear or clothing, and even inside their own bodies.

These are people who ingest capsules containing drugs, usually cocaine or heroinThe mission is to ingest the capsules, usually cocaine or heroin, inside latex gloves or condoms, to prevent the normal digestive processes from ruining the merchandise. The mission consists of ingesting the capsules, transporting them from one country to another, expelling them, cleaning them and handing them over to another member of the drug organization who is in charge of receiving them.

This mode of trafficking will be the focus of this article.

Mules: who are the chosen ones?

In general, when it comes to recruiting drug mules, drug traffickers look for people of very low income and poverty. people of very low income and poverty, in situations of great vulnerability, marginalization, desperation and lack of perceived opportunities to get ahead, among other factors, are sought.In general, when recruiting mules, drug traffickers look for people of very low income and poverty, in situations of great vulnerability, marginality, desperation and lack of perceived opportunities to get ahead, among other factors.

By accepting to transport drugs they become criminals and at the same time victims of criminal organizations that abuse the conditions in which they live. that take advantage of the conditions in which people who agree to this type of activity live. They give them the assurance that it is not a dangerous activity and that everything is arranged. They deceive them and promise them safety conditions that are not fulfilled.

And they do not always agree voluntarily. Many times they are tricked and extorted to carry out the task, forcing them to carry the drugs by force and under threat to themselves or their families. In other cases they are victims of human trafficking networks.

A not minor fact is that airport security has a body scanner that detects the capsules inside the body, so it is no coincidence that many of the mules are pregnant women. is no coincidence that many of the mules are pregnant women, who cannot be X-rayedIt is no coincidence that many of the mules are pregnant women, who cannot be subjected to X-rays, making it more difficult for them to be detained. They are like a perfect "container", albeit the weakest and most physically compromised.

Lack of awareness of the risks

The decision to become a drug mule is usually gestated in the combination of a vulnerable situation of desperation and hopelessness and a false conception that this is an activity that will easily generate money. It is perceived as a possible opportunity and livelihood.

But there is nothing really easy about this "work": it involves first of all risks to the person's health. (intoxication, intestinal obstruction, peritonitis and if a capsule ruptures, it is very likely that its transporter will die) and exposes it to commit a crime punishable by imprisonment for possession and trafficking of narcotics. This will depend on the country where the mules are discovered.

There are countries where the penalties are up to 12 years imprisonmentdepending on the quantities trafficked and whether or not there is collaboration in the arrest and subsequent investigation. In other countries, such as China and Indonesia, the penalties faced by drug mules can reach life imprisonment and even the death penalty.

In the case of Argentina, according to the report "Incarceration for drug-related crimes in Argentina", 7 out of 10 foreign women prisoners are arrested for having acted as drug mules. The vast majority of women prisoners are mothers and have young children, in situations of vulnerability, helplessness and lack of both affective and economic resources.

Disposable containers

Two months ago, a 19-year-old girl was found dead in a central street of the city of Buenos Aires after two cocaine capsules (out of a total of 80) exploded inside her stomach.

According to witnesses to the case, the young woman was thrown out of a vehicle, so it is believed that other people involved in the network, faced with her death, simply discarded her. A container that is no longer useful should be thrown away. The mules are no longer human beings for the drug traffickers, they are a necessary object in the chain.They are a necessary object in the chain of operations, but they are replaceable.

Many links in the narco chain

When this works and the drug is delivered to the desired point, it is thanks to a large network of accomplices, ranging from those who procure and store the product, who recruit, who transport, who deliver the substance, who facilitate the procedures to make the trip, who receive the merchandise, and some corrupt and necessary arrangement with airport or border security personnel.

Both mules and sellers commit crimes for which they are tried and imprisoned, yet they are replaceable means for other peers. they are replaceable by other peers.. Therefore, their arrest barely touches the powerful narcos who, free and preserved, will continue to negotiate with people's health and lives.

For the narco every mule is an object that stores their valuable merchandise, their lives are of no importance, it is only relevant that the capsules arrive at their destination without the slightest economic loss. It is a multi-million dollar business that plays with life and death.