US Customs and Border Protection said this week it has seized approximately 300 lbs (146 kg) of methamphetamine hidden in solar panels at Los Angeles International Airport.
The modules were being shipped to New Zealand and were flagged based on prior intelligence and intercepted before export, US Customs said in a statement on its Facebook account. The agency did not provide further details.
“We do this every day,” the statement said. “These ‘criminal masterminds’ never stood a chance.”
To pv magazine’s knowledge, this is the first known case involving solar panels used to conceal drugs. However, solar modules have occasionally been used by drug producers in the past to power illegal facilities.
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The “solar panels” shown in the pictures with this article appear to be hydronic solar thermal collectors (AKA solar hot water panels), not solar photovoltaic (PV) modules.
These are thermal hot water panels.
Not solar panels to generater electricity.
Why did none off the PV-magazine specialists realize this?