More than 400 drug smuggling bids foiled in Dubai in first three months of the year

Customs inspectors prevented a huge haul of drugs, including heroin, cocaine and millions of pills, from being brought into the emirate

Customs inspectors in Dubai seized millions of pills and large amounts of heroin, cocaine and other drugs during the first three months of the year. Courtesy: Dubai Customs

Customs inspectors thwarted a bid to bring more than five million illicit Captagon pills into Dubai, officials said.

The massive seizure - made at Jebel Ali Port - was one of 421 drug smuggling attempts foiled at air, land and sea border controls across the emirate in the the first three months of the year.

Dubai Customs prevented a haul of illicit substances, including heroin, cocaine, tramadol, methamphetamine, from falling into the wrong hands as part of an ongoing effort to combat the drugs trade.

“The seizures reflect our firm stand against all attempts to smuggle toxic drugs into the UAE,” said Ahmed Musabih, director general of Dubai Customs.

“Ridding our community of dangerous drugs and criminals is a mission we take very seriously at Dubai Customs.”

He said the major challenge facing Dubai Customs is “to find a perfect balance between facilitating the movement of huge volumes of trade and passengers coming through Dubai, and protecting local society against the perils of smuggling.”

“We combine state-of-the-art advance information, risk assessment and shipment tracking technology with highly-skilled, well-trained inspection and intelligence personnel to ensure efficient control of Dubai’s borders and ports of entry.”