Hollow bananas and heroin chocolates: Dubai Police help bust drug smugglers
Dubai Police helped stop an international smuggling gang that used elaborate techniques to take drugs across borders.
Despite tactics that included hidden compartments in suitcases and hollowed-out bananas, law enforcement seized two tonnes of drugs in several European countries including Denmark, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Italy, Spain and Austria.
Dubai Police uncovered the operation in May last year, identifying suspects in Europe, despite the fact the drugs were not thought to have passed through the emirate.
Officers met with counterparts in Germany and worked with European forces. A joint operation led to 80 suspects across Europe being arrested.
Police would not reveal how they learnt of the smugglers, but officers flew to Europe to help authorities there over the course of a few months.
“A group of Dubai Police officers made field visits to European countries, where they closely monitored criminal activities by drug smugglers and traffickers,” said Maj Gen Khalil Al Mansouri, Dubai Police assistant commander-in-chief for criminal investigation.
“Dubai Police plays a significant role in combating drug-related crimes and this crime is an international one. Our partners in countries across the world co-operated to reveal the identity of those criminals.”
Col Eid Mohammed Thani Hareb, head of anti-narcotics at Dubai Police, said that “international co-operation between Dubai Police and forces in other countries, including Germany, led to this bust”.
Norbert Drude, president of Germany’s customs investigations agency, thanked police for their co-operation.
Earlier this year, Dubai Police arrested five men in connection with the shipping of more than 1.9 tonnes of narcotics with an estimated street value of A$810 million (Dh2.2 billion) destined for the streets of Australia.
One of those arrested was Koder Jomaa, the owner of The Fit Kitchen, a healthy-eating restaurant in Jumeirah Lakes Towers.
The other men arrested in the UAE have been named in Australia as Mustapha Dib, Stephen Elmir and brothers Michael and Fadi Ibrahim, who were the subject of a TV crime series in Sydney called Underbelly.
The year-long pursuit was hailed a success by police, and as an example of how effective cross-border partnerships can be in the fight against international crime.
A group of Dubai Police officers made field visits to European countries, where they closely monitored criminal activities MAJ GEN KHALIL AL MANSOURI Dubai Police