ABU DHABI // Pakistani police have arrested a gang accused of trying to sell drugs in the UAE through WhatsApp.
The authorities acted on information from a Ministry of the Interior anti-drug unit to detain the gang, reported Wam, the state news agency.
WhatsApp users in the UAE had been receiving messages from telephone numbers in Pakistan, offering drugs for sale.
Payment was to be sent via remittance, though it is not known how the narcotics were to be delivered.
“The efforts of the Ministry of Interior and cooperation and Pakistani authorities have resulted in the identification of the individual who was sending messages through social media to promote the sale of narcotic drugs,” said Colonel Saeed Al Suwaidi, head of the anti-drugs unit at the ministry.
He expressed his appreciation to the Pakistani authorities for their response and cooperation.
They acted promptly while monitoring the messages in coordination with a number of local and foreign authorities.
Col Al Suwaidi said the ministry and overseas partners such as Pakistani police would work to combat dealers at home and abroad.
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