Suitcase with a double bottom Passenger hides over 11,000 diamonds in hand luggage
Customs officials have found more than 11,000 diamonds in a traveler's hand luggage at Frankfurt Airport. These were hidden in the false bottom, according to customs and the German Federal Police.
12.12.2025, 21:50
SDA
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- Customs officials confiscated around 11,300 rough diamonds hidden in the hand luggage of a traveler from Angola at Frankfurt Airport.
- The 53-year-old did not have the required Kimberly certificate, nor had he declared the gemstones. He is now in custody.
- Such certificates are mandatory for EU imports in order to prevent the trade in so-called blood diamonds.
Customs officials at Frankfurt Airport found almost 11,300 rough diamonds on a traveler from Angola. The 53-year-old had hidden them in the false bottom of his hand luggage suitcase, according to the Frankfurt am Main Customs Investigation Office on Friday. The precious stones were noticed during the security check on Thursday.
Because the man could not produce a certificate for the rough diamonds and had not declared them, the gemstones were confiscated and counted manually by customs officials. The value of the diamonds was initially unclear and had to be determined by an expert. The 53-year-old was brought before an investigating judge on Thursday, who ordered him to be remanded in custody.
A Kimberly certificate is required to import rough diamonds into the European Union. This certifies that the gemstones are not so-called blood diamonds. These illegally mined diamonds have often been used to finance civil wars on the African continent since the 1990s. As a result, an international certification system was agreed upon.
