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Comment by basisword | Hacker News Reader

I don’t understand this. Does Canadian law allow prosecutions for trace amounts of drugs that are invisible to the naked eye? I can understand swiping the luggage and finding a trace amount leading you to conduct a more thorough search of the luggage (e.g. for hidden compartments) but otherwise, not only is this a huge violation of the guys rights, but it’s a waste of every bodies time and tax payer money.

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I think they assumed that the liquid in the shampoo bottle contained cocaine (some new magic smuggling method), and then sent it off for lab testing. He was detained awaiting test results.

The question is if the field test used is specific enough to rise to the level of arresting/detaining someone.

That is not a new method. There is even a Locked Up Abroad episode that someone gets caught smuggling coke in shampoo bottles through the airport.

I would think it is quite common and effective to throw off drug dogs.

3 bottles and one tests positive for coke, I am not sure what anyone would reasonably expect the officers to do here besides arrest the guy.

Seems straight forward though this guy is owed a good amount of money from the Canadian government for his troubles.

Coke in liquid form?

In theory, law enforcement could arrest you based on trace amounts of drugs found anywhere on your person. If they want to arrest you they will find a reason, and trace amounts is sometimes good enough. Even if it will never hold up in court, if they want to get you, they will.

This was a common complaint about PCR covid tests with the cycles ramped up.

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