Dubai Customs made 936 drug seizures across its land, sea, air and passenger ports in the first four months of 2022, the governmental body told Al Arabiya English.
This compares to 558 seizures in the same period last year, Dubai Customs said, speaking on the International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking, which falls on June 26.
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Dubai Customs thwarted several attempts to smuggle narcotic substances, which included tramadol tablets, captagon, opium, heroin, hemp seeds, crystal meth, marijuana, and other narcotics.
Major seizures in first four months of 2022 include:
• An attempt to smuggle 2,968 boxes of coffee creamer containing amphetamine was thwarted at Jebel Ali port.
• At Dubai International Airport, Dubai Customs officers thwarted an attempt to smuggle 97 capsules weighing 955 grams of heroin, swallowed by a passenger.
• The Inland Customs Centers Management made 10 crystal meth seizures during the first four months of this year.
• The smuggling of 42 kilograms of marijuana was thwarted. They were possessed by an African passenger at Dubai International Airport and were hidden inside the bags of dried hot peppers.
The Passenger Operations Department made 222 seizures between January and April 2022 compared to 198 seizures in the corresponding period last year. The Inland Customs Centers Management made 501 seizures compared to 32 seizures in the first 4 months of 2021, whereas Air Cargo Centers Management made 207 seizures compared to 325 in the corresponding period in 2021. The Sea Customs Centers Management made six seizures compared to three in the first 4 months of 2021.
“Protecting the community is a major strategic goal in Dubai Customs and its five-year plan, and we are giving this role a great priority in light of the increasing risks, and as part of our commitment to our national duty,” Ahmed Mahboob Musabih, Director General of Dubai Customs and CEO of Ports, Customs and Free Zone Corporation, said.
“With Dubai's progress in the global leadership race, the emirate has become an international model in fighting drugs and curbing their health and social damages. Dubai Customs actively participates in these efforts by developing the capabilities of its human resources, especially customs officers, in accordance with the best standards in customs inspection. The government department constantly updates and develops its systems and programs for monitoring suspicious shipments. We adopt an integrated series of procedures and techniques to address all smuggling attempts, in line with the department’s strategy 2021-2026 to lead safe customs globally.”
The customs centers are provided with the latest inspection devices, including the advanced container inspection system; the latest integrated global system for scanning and inspecting containers and moving trucks. It is capable of scanning 160 trucks per hour. Siyaj program, the border security initiative, is constantly updated using the latest AI technologies.
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