Customs foils attempt to smuggle banned drugs

Dubai:  Dubai Customs yesterday foiled an attempt to smuggle 1,000 banned medical drugs into the country via Dubai International Airport.

The drugs were hidden inside a receiver device in an air parcel package to the UAE from an Arab country.

Omar Ahmad Al Muhairi, Senior Manager of Air Cargo Department, said that the drugs were discovered when an inspector suspected the package, and ordered it to be searched thoroughly.

The owner of the parcel package, who also works as a sales representative, admitted that he knew about the package's contents. He said that he came to collect the package after receiving a call from someone in an Arab country about its arrival. He also confessed that he was planning to sell the drugs to a buyer for large sums of money.

Upon seizing the package, the drugs were then transferred to the Ministry of Health, which affirmed that the drugs were among medications controlled by the Ministry of Health. The pills also contained a chemical which was highly addictive and is usually traded as a drug among addicts.