The tubes of toothpaste inside the case of the flight attendants that were later discovered to contain drugs. — Photo from the police

HÀ NỘI — The four Vietnam Airlines flight attendants that were detained last week on suspicion of trafficking 11kg of drugs have been released on bail pending further inquiries.

They have told police they were not aware they were carrying narcotics.

On March 16, Tân Sơn Nhất International Airport's customs authority scanned the luggage of the four attendants, Trần Thị Thu Ngân, Võ Tú Quỳnh, Nguyễn Thanh Thuỷ, and Đặng Phương Vân, and found in their cases 327 unopened tubes of toothpaste of various brands and 17 bottles of mouthwash.

157 toothpaste tubes were discovered to contain a total of 11.284kg of ketamine and MDMA.

Law enforcement convened on Tuesday to review the case. The accused claimed in France, a Vietnamese national contacted them and asked them to carry the toothpaste and mouthwash to send to a family member in Việt Nam, paying them about VNĐ10 million (US$425) in remuneration.

The four attendants claim were not aware of the goods were in fact containing drugs.

HCM City's police have launched an investigation to collaborate their stories and find the person who gave the drugs to the airline staff in Europe and all those involved in this matter.

The incident received heavy public attention in Việt Nam with opinions split on whether the four attendants are part of the smuggling ring or they have been conned.

Persons convicted of trafficking over 100g of synthetic drugs could face a death sentence in Việt Nam. — VNS