An Argentinian man who decided to look for some entertainment at a local casino is regretting the decision. He went to the Casino Club in Chubut to play roulette and left behind a “Kinder” egg when he finished. It contained eight baggies of cocaine.
This past Wednesday evening, a casino employee came across the chocolate egg, which always contains some type of prize for kids. Opening it up, the employee found a prize, but not of the toy kind.
At that point, the worker approached a police officer performing additional duty at the casino with the surprise find. Inside were eight nylon baggies, all of which contained cocaine.
Sniffing Out the Culprit
The police officer called the station for assistance and began an investigation. The first step was to check the casino’s surveillance system, which proved effective.
The cameras showed who left the Kinder egg and police then set out to uncover his identity. It didn’t take long for them to put a name to the face. They subsequently arrested a 27-year-old man. Authorities haven’t yet released the suspect’s name.
When the police weighed the baggies, they found they contained about 3.7 grams of nose candy. That’s a relatively small amount without a lot of value. Data from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime’s (UNODC) World Drug Report puts Argentina’s per-gram price of cocaine at around $5.90.
It’s still enough to get the man in trouble, though. Following his arrest, he was released and will have to return to court later to face charges. The police seized his cell phone, which could result in more charges or more arrests.
Kinder eggs are banned in the US. The Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetics Act prohibits any confectionary product that contains non-edible items. However, different variants are available.
This latest arrest follows shortly after Argentinian police stopped a drug dealer who was allegedly using a casino as a storefront. That investigation is still ongoing.
UNODC data shows that Argentina ranks 11th in terms of cocaine use. England, the US, and Australia occupy second through fourth, respectively. Albania sits at the top of the list, while Singapore is at the bottom. Different reporting methods and times may skew the overall data.
Gambling, Cocaine Share Traits
Different studies have shown that gambling and cocaine addicts share many similarities. For example, an addiction, even one to alcohol, stems from a lack of impulse control and a desire to find the “rush.”
Psychologists have explored the behavior of addicts and found that they all share this trait. They live for the rush and are unable to control their urges. As a result, these individuals constantly seek out new ways to satisfy their cravings.
Why the lack of impulse control occurs is still unknown. The US National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) characterizes addiction as a “brain disease.” But there are other factors, such as the individual’s environment or development, that play a role.
Several people, including neuroscientist Dr. Marc Lewis, have worked to debunk the theory that addiction is a brain disease. Lewis is a former addict who for years has asserted that addiction is only a behavioral problem.
The link between gambling and drug addiction has also led some psychologists to reach a common conclusion. They argue that an individual doesn’t become a gambling addict because of gambling.
Instead, they become an addict because of an inclination toward addiction. If they don’t feed the addiction with gambling, they’ll look for something else, like drugs, to satisfy the urge.
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