Story Archive

Road Trip

To pay off a C$2,000 (US$1,500) gambling debt, Constantine Xethalis agreed to transport “something” from Montreal, Que., Canada, to Calgary, Alta., Canada — a 4,000 km (2,500 mi) road trip — and while he was on the way, pick up two passengers in Toronto and take them to Calgary too. Xethalis picked up Serge Allen and a woman, and Allen was very helpful: he used navigation on his iPhone to find the shortest route. That took them over the Blue Water Bridge into Port Huron, Mich., crossing the border. U.S. Customs and Border Protection referred the trio to a “secondary inspection” because none of them had proof of citizenship, and that’s when Customs officials found what the “something” was: “a green reusable grocery bag containing approximately 10 pounds of methamphetamine in tablet form,” according to the resulting criminal charges. Xethalis and Allen have been charged with drug trafficking; the woman was not charged. (RC/Detroit News) ...This is just a guess, but Xethalis probably won’t be able to afford bail.