Dubai Customs announces 1,283 seizures at airports in 2022
Dubai Customs’ Passenger Operations Department announced 1,283 seizures in 2022, including 707 drug seizures and 268 customs cases.
The Department made 312 seizures in Q1, 227 seizures in Q2, 330 seizures in Q3, and 364 seizures in Q4.
“Protecting our society from the hazards of prohibited shipments, which can wreak havoc on societies, economies and household livelihoods globally, is a strategic priority at our Department,” said Ibrahim Kamali, Director of Passenger Operations Department. “We are the first line of defence and this is an integral part of our role to ensure the security and safety of our society. For this, the customs centers are equipped with the latest inspection systems and devices including the body scanners. Our inspection officers receive intensive training to gain the best skills and competency that enable them to counter effectively all illegitimate smuggling attempts no matter how cunning and smart they are.”
The Passenger Operations Department, which employees 834 employees, organized 274 specialized trainings in cooperation with the Customs Training Center and 106 workshops, which brings the total to 380 workshops and courses.
Major hauls
A passenger coming from an African country was arrested for smuggling marijuana, where he hid them skillfully inside pineapple fruits. The box was scanned to reveal pineapples with black plastic bags inside them that contained marijuana weed rolls. The passenger was also searched manually and scanned for body packing but nothing more was found.
The Passenger Operations Department thwarted another smuggling attempt by an African passenger carrying two bags full of foodstuff, in which 36.76kg of marijuana were seized.
Another operation saw the inspectors at the Passenger Operations Department seize 3.7kg of marijuana hidden among vehicle filters.
Distinguished innovations
Dubai Customs developed the Smart Inspection Table to automate and streamline the inspection experience and at the same time capture all the relevant data for further processing and action.
The Smart Inspection Table is integrated with internal systems to speed the inspection process and achieve passenger’s satisfaction by giving more privacy during inspection, as well as monitor and record the process for inspector KPIs management.