Four million capsules of captagon seized in largest drug operation in UAE

Dubai: More than four million capsules of the stimulant captagon were seized recently by Dubai Police making it the biggest drug operation across the country this year, a senior police official said.

During Monday's press conference Major General Abdul Jaleel Mehdi, Director of the general department for combating narcotics at Dubai Police described the person behind importing the substance and storing in Dubai as "a highly professional artist in the trade of drugs."

Only one Arab was arrested. He was in Dubai to collect the imported 4,200,000 capsules, which had been delivered from an Arab Levant country to two other Arab countries before coming to Dubai. The substance was ultimately targeted to be delivered to Saudi Arabia, he said.

The total number of capsules seized so far this year is 5,330,000.

"In Dubai we don't have a demand or market for the stimulant captagon. This substance was aimed for Saudi Arabia but this doesn't mean it was the only country where the trade will take place," he said.

The masterminds behind the operation and the entire organised gang are still under observation and will be arrested soon in coordination with Saudi officials as most of them are present in the Kingdom.

The operation was also collaborated along with a team member from the anti-narcotics department at the Interior Ministry.

The same suspects carried out a previous minor operation in Dubai which was not busted, he said. He added that the suspect arrested had frequently visited Dubai.

Warehoused

"He, H.A., is so professional that he handled the shipment of the entire substance from one of the ports by himself. He emptied huge rolls of fabric where the substance was hidden and he later placed them in boxes. He managed to store the substance in a rented warehouse in Dubai," he said.

The 35-year-old suspect confessed to Dubai Police that a second member was supposed to be arriving in Dubai during the Eid Al Adha holidays, but the operation was cancelled.

According to a police investigator, Captagon is usually manufactured in Eastern Europe and Turkey. The street value for a single capsule of captagon costs Dh50 but it is commonly sold in small packs. The street value for this case is expected to cost Dh16,800,000.

The side-effects of this addictive drug significantly damages brain cells, disrupts the normal heart rhythm, enlarges the veins in the body and could ultimately become fatal, he said.

Statistics from the beginning of the year until end of November, 2008 and 2009:

2008
Number of drug cases: 542
Number of people arrested: 734

2009
Number of drug cases: 653
Number of arrested: 1021

Comparison
Increase of 20.4 per cent in number of drug cases
Increase of 39 per cent in the number of people arrested
Increase of 47.9 per cent in the number of drugs seized