85 cases of diesel smuggling in UAE

Eighty-five cases of diesel smuggling, both within and outside the UAE, came to light last year.

At a news conference on Tuesday, Dubai Traffic Police said 48 of the cases were in Abu Dhabi, 11 in Dubai, five in Sharjah, six in Ras Al Khaimah and 15 cases in Ajman.

Major General Mohammed Saif Al Zafeen, Deputy Commander in Chief of Dubai Police for Operations, said diesel smugglers can be prosecuted for transporting hazardous material without licence which carries a maximum penalty of imprisonment or a fine of Dh30,000.

Diesel smugglers can also be charged with carrying petroleum products in cars not equipped for this purpose and the fine can range from Dh5,000 to Dh50,000.
Maj. Gen. Zafeen said smugglers take advantage of differences in diesel prices between the emirates to indulge in intra-UAE operations while some try to smuggle the fuel to African countries where it is much more expensive.

He is the police is combatting fuel smuggling in coordination with oil companies which often report the car numbers of smugglers buying diesel from them.

There were 11 cases of fuel smuggling by ordinary passenger cars without a licence.

Colonel Shawaf  Abdul Rahman, Director General of the Directorate of Traffic of Sharjah, said five people were arrested for fuel smuggling in the emirate during the past four months. Oil companies informed the police about numbers of 23 cars involved in fuel smuggling, he said.

Police is also monitoring workshops that fabricate tanks for storage of fuel for cars unlicensed for this purpose.


 

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