Police seize 15.5kg of heroin in fruit carton

Abu Dhabi: Police have arrested three men for allegedly possessing 15.5 kilos of heroin, a senior police officer said on Saturday.

Colonel Hamad Ahmad Al Hammadi, Director of the Criminal Investigations Department (CID), said the three Asian men allegedly concealed heroin in cartons of mandarin fruit.

"The police set up a trap to arrest the suspects after making a deal with them to buy the shipment of heroin for Dh960,000 after receiving permission from the public prosecution for the arrest," Al Hammadi said.

Lieutenant Colonel Sultan Sawayeh Al Darmaki, head of the Anti-Narcotics unit in the CID and the coordinator of the operation, said police received a tip off that an Afghan man who was involved in illegal drug-trading activities was looking for a buyer for his "goods".

"The undercover team negotiated buying the shipment of heroin. The deal consisted of receiving the first half during the exchange, and the other half after the deal was completed," he said.

Al Darmaki also said that the seized heroin was of high quality.

"Each kilogram of the heroin would sell for Dh90,000, adding up to a total of Dh1,395,000," he said.