Bid to smuggle 2kg of 'crystal meth' foiled

Customs officers at Dubai International Airport found 2kg of the narcotic "crystal meth" hidden in secret pockets in a bag belonging to an African passenger on a multi-transit destinations flight starting from Nigeria and ending in India via Ethiopia and Dubai.

Ali Al Maqhawi, Director of Airport Operations at Dubai Customs, said that customs officers at Terminal 1 of Dubai International Airport were suspicious of a bag passing over inspection belts coming from the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa without being collected by a passenger.

After enquiring with Ethiopian Airlines about the bag’s owner, the passenger was identified following his arrival at Dubai International Airport, whence he proceeded to the transit lounge and booked a ticket to Delhi in India, requesting the transfer of his bag.

Customs officers passed the bag through scanning machines where the images revealed concealed compartments suspected to contain narcotics.

Information was passed to the competent agencies in India for further processing and tracing the bag. Indian authorities reported that the bag was examined upon arrival and was found to be having secret compartments stuffed with 2kg of narcotics. The passenger, the owner of the bag, was arrested and charged by Indian authorities.

Ali Al Maqhawi noted that "the seizure is an example of international efforts to combat narcotics smuggling and reflects our  keenness to keep Dubai free of being a transit point for smuggling ."