Abu Dhabi Police seize 17.5kg of drugs, arrest 5

The Abu Dhabi Police have seized more than 17kg of drugs with the arrest of five Asian men in separate cases. The suspects were allegedly selling the drugs to "youngsters across the country", the police said on Saturday.

Brigadier Mohammad Suhail Al Rashidi, acting director of the police's criminal security sector, said the suspects were arrested during two operations. In the first operation, four people were caught with 12kg of drugs - 8kg heroin and 4kg of crystal meth. The drugs were hidden in the middle of four tonnes of vehicle parts in a cargo container at an industrial shop. The police monitored the suspects' activities for 18 days before arresting them.

In the second operation, 5.5kg crystal meth was sized from a mobile phone shop, said Birg Al Rashidi. A salesman at the shop was arrested for peddling the drugs.

Anti-drugs campaigns

The police had recently launched multiple anti-drug campaigns, including the 'My Life is Priceless' drive in September.

The campaign, which concludes on October 16, focused on the youth, families and parents. It saw the police visit community councils, private institutes, schools and clubs of Arab and foreign communities.

It included workshops about the risks of drugs held in Arabic, English and Urdu.

jasmine@khaleejtimes.com