THE ART OF DECEPTION - CONCEALING CARGO CAN GET COMPLICATED

Many drug-runners take elaborate steps to hide their cargo, stowing
narcotics in spare car batteries, tires, gas tanks, air bag compartments and
hidden chambers. Consider these examples from the Lowcountry:

In June 2003, Colleton County deputies found nine kilos of cocaine
stuffed into a hidden compartment behind a car's stereo system. If the
cocaine hadn't smelled like dirty feet, it might have gone undetected, said
Sgt. Jerry Polk.

On another occasion, deputies found a false floor in a van. When a
special code was pushed on a control panel, the front seats would
shift forward, giving the owner access to a 6-inch-deep space that ran
the length of the van, said Sgt. Jesse Pringle.

The Interstate Criminal Enforcement Team in Dorchester County
seized another van after finding a hiding space under the floor. The
driver was an elderly man dressed in a business suit who had a
"Support law enforcement" bumper sticker on his van.

On one occasion, the ICE Team pulled over a man who gobbled down a
pile of marijuana while leading officers on a low-speed chase. The man
rinsed it down with grape juice, but police found bits of the drug on
his face and lips, stuck like chewing tobacco.

The ICE Team stopped a man and woman last year who claimed they
were vacationing together on a trip from New York to Miami. The woman
couldn't recall the man's name, even though he had just told deputies
she was his wife of five years. Officers later found about $500,000
and a chunk of cocaine in the car, said Dorchester County Sheriff's
Deputy Joe Burnette.