Surgeons in New York had to be called in to remove a flash drive from the stomach of a man who swallowed it in an apparent bid to hide incriminating evidence following his arrest in connection with an ATM skimming scam.
According to court filings obtained by The Smoking Gun Web site, Florin Necula was arrested outside a bank in the city on 21 January accused of placing skimming devices on ATMs in a bid to steal card data.
After being taken to a Secret Service office in Brooklyn for questioning, Necula grabbed the flash drive, which had been in his possession at the time of the arrest, and swallowed it.
After waiting four days for the device to pass, doctors from the New York Downtown Hospital removed it, concerned that Necula "would be injured if they allowed the flash drive to remain inside him".
The suspect has been charged with four offences, including obstruction of justice for his attempt to destroy the USB evidence. He is currently being held without bail.
Giga-Biter In Obstruction Charge - The Smoking Gun