These Bees Smoke Way Too Much

smokebees links to original article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 10 October 2011)

In Adana, police got a tip about a truck carrying contraband cigarettes and
stopped a vehicle driven by Hamdi Ö. at the northern entrance to the city.
The police wanted to search the truck, which was laden with bee hives, but
when Salih Ş., the owner of the hives, climbed onto the bed of the truck and
opened the hives' lids the erupting bees attacked the police who had started
searching.

The honey bees stung 15 policemen and the search was suspended while
the truck was brought to the Special Operations Directorate yard. The
police then donned masked bee-handling suits purchased by their bosses
and searched each of the hives. A total of 32,500 contraband packs of
cigarettes were seized. During the operation truck driver Hamdi Ö. and
SalihŞ. and Mücahit Ş., who were determined to be the owners of the
hives, were taken into custody. The three suspects were transported to
court, where they paid an administrative fine, and then released, pending
trial.