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2.6kg of marijuana concealed in jalabiya

The Dubai Customs has recently foiled a bid to smuggle 2.6kg of marijuana – with a street value of around Dh33,000 – at the Dubai Cargo Village.

A senior official said the illegal contraband found in a parcel heading to Asia, through Dubai, from an African country.

Ahmed Abdullah bin Lahej, Director of Air Customs Centres Department at Dubai Customs, said, the sender declared that the cargo contained documents, but it was later found to be holding a jalabiya – a long traditional garment worn by women.

“Scanning the parcel with x-ray, a customs inspector suspected the contents because of an unusual density, hence a manual inspection was forced,” said Bin Lahej.

He added that the cargo was harbouring a plastic bag containing herbal seeds, concealed within the garment, so the Customs K9 unit was summoned to the scene.

“After testing a sample of the seeds at the Dubai Customs Mobile Lab, which was also summoned to the Dubai Cargo Village, it confirmed that they were narcotic marijuana.”

In line with cooperation between Dubai Customs and the General Department of Anti-Narcotics at Dubai Police, the parcel was shipped on to its final destination. Bin Lahej continued: “The information gathered was shared with authorities in the concerned country so they could take necessary legal actions.”

Early this November, Dubai Customs thwarted an attempt to smuggle over 6kg of marijuana, worth nearly Dh72,000, from an African passenger at Terminal 1 of the Dubai International Airport.

Ali Al Mugahwi, Director of the Airports Operations at Dubai Customs, told Khaleej Times that drug smugglers are often trying out smart new techniques. “They sometimes conceal drugs in luggage, wallets, socks, handbags, clothes, shoes, cigarettes, underwear and even stomach, but our vigilant inspectors who are well trained and equipped with the most sophisticated scanning devices will always be ready for them.”

ahmedshaaban@khaleejtimes.com