Dubai Customs foils attempt to smuggle 3.7 kg of narco-crystals

An Asian man has been caught while attempting to smuggle 3.7 kg of narco-crystals into Dubai through Dubai International Airport's (DIA) Terminal 2. Dubai Customs inspectors intercepted the suspect upon his arrival in Dubai and turned him over to concerned authorities. 

Ali Al Maghawi, Director of Airport Operations at Dubai Customs, said the Asian passenger looked confused and unstable when he arrived at the airport, which aroused the suspicion of the Dubai Customs Operation Room at DIA and members of the mobile team. 

“As the passenger approached the customs check point at DIA’s Terminal 2, the inspector asked him to place his luggage on the counter for inspection and to be scanned by the baggage screening device, which showed an abnormal density in the periphery of the bag. By removing the edges, a plastic bag containing a snow-colored substance was found. Afterwards, the substance was declared to be narco-crystals, weighing nearly 3.75 kg,” Al Maghawi said. 

“When Dubai Customs investigators questioned the passenger, he stated that the bags he was carrying with him belonged to another person of the same nationality, who is now in his country. The narcotics were supposed to be delivered to another country in East Asia. A seizure report was issued and the passenger along with the contraband and the investigation report containing information about the accomplice were transferred to the General Department of the Anti-Narcotics at Dubai Police, as per mutual cooperation and coordination,” Al Maghawi said. 

Al Maghawi said that Dubai Customs pays a lot of attention to its team of inspectors, providing them with necessary support to perform their assigned tasks. It also carries out specialized courses on detecting drugs, various methods of concealing drugs and behavioural patterns of individuals who smuggle these items. Moreover, Dubai Customs furnishes inspectors with cutting-edge technologies in screening and inspection of devices, which have largely contributed to honing their expertise in countering attempts and exposing complicated and cunning smuggling methods. 

He also mentioned that drug traffickers are smuggling banned drugs in different countries using various means, including the exploitation of people’s circumstances, often offering money and false promises to lure them into becoming drug mules. While drug traffickers attempt to diversify their smuggling methods, Dubai Customs inspectors are likewise acting proactively to thwart such illicit practices that threaten the community, exposing smuggling methods of all kinds and capturing smugglers. 

The banned crystal substance contains methamphetamines, which are stimulants that speed up brain activity and cause brain cell damage. It can be produced into crystals that resemble pieces of ice or shards of glass. It can also be smoked like a cigarette or in pipes, mixed with water and injected using needles or ground into a fine powder to be inhaled or swallowed. Some pharmaceutical companies use methamphetamine for medical purposes; however, some people illegally produce methamphetamine by adding chemical detergent substances.