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Major international gang of drug smugglers busted

DUBAI — The General Department of Anti Narcotics of the Dubai Police have arrested 21 smugglers and seized 18kg of heroin. The suspects are members and agents of an international gang which has exploiting the poor to transport the drugs.

This was revealed by Major-General Abdul Jalil Mahdi, Director of the General Department of Anti-Narcotics of the Dubai Police on Sunday at a press conference.

He said that the police, in the operation named ‘painful strike’, also succeeded in arresting the two gang leaders, who are amongst the most dangerous drug traffickers in the world

“This is a big breakthrough. The Dubai Police arrested the men based in Pakistan and this has led to the collapse of the gang which exports drugs to the UAE and other countries.

Mahdi praised the dedication of the Dubai Police who arrested the 21-member gang and seized 18kg of heroin in cooperation with the General Department of Drug Control in the UAE Ministry of Interior; the Abu Dhabi Police; and competent authorities in Oman.

Mahdi pointed out that the anti-drug department of the Dubai police had been on vigil for the past few months and had been monitoring the agents who were travelling in and out of Dubai and Abu Dhabi carrying the drug, sometimes in their stomachs, on the instructions of the gang leaders who lived abroad.

The police who had been studying the case since last July, looked for links, analysed the process of the drug transfer, searched for a common thread and finally solved the puzzle by coming to the conclusion that the drug was exported through agents.

Mahdi said: “Based on the findings, the police started monitoring two of the gang leaders.” He added that their modus operandi was very efficient and the agents who carried drugs did not leave behind a trail, nor did they know each other.

The Dubai Police, however, discovered the gang’s strategic core of work, upset their plans and in one operation arrested 14 drug traffickers who had come from Pakistan to Dubai on visit visas, both individually and as part of group tours. The police also arrested five smugglers from Abu Dhabi, and two from the Sultanate of Oman.

The operation succeeded because of the cooperation and coordination between local and international anti-drug officials, he added.

During the press conference, Mahdi expressed his appreciation for Lt General Shaikh Saif bin Zayed Al Nahyan, UAE Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior for his comprehensive care for all security services in the UAE. He also expressed his gratitude to Commander General of the Dubai Police, Lt General Dahi Khalfan Tamim, for all efforts in placement of efficient cadres and sending the staff for training, specialist programmes, seminars and conferences in order to strengthen their knowledge. He also praised the staff of the Dubai Police, the authorities in the Sultanate of Oman.

news@khaleejtimes.com