Dubai
Dubai Police have arrested five people for trying to smuggle a large amount of drugs hidden inside a drilling machine shipped to Hamriya port from an Arab country, police said on Monday.
Brigadier Eid Mohammad Thani Hareb, director of the Anti-Narcotic Department at Dubai Police, said the gang members, all Arabs, were planning to sell the drugs inside the country.
“They smuggled the drugs inside a drilling machine. We seized 783,800 pills of an illegal painkiller and 562 plastic bags contain 115kg of Captagon,” Brigadier Hareb said.
Under the directions of Major-General Khalil Ebrahim Al Mansouri, Assistant Commander-in-Chief of Dubai Police for Criminal Investigation Affairs, the five suspects were arrested before fleeing the country.
A 45-year-old businessman suspect, identified as H. M. A, was arrested while processing the documents of the drilling machine, while the 33-year-old second suspect identified as M. H. K, an engineer, was arrested at the Hatta border while trying to escape. Two other suspects were arrested at a hotel apartment in another emirate and the fifth suspect was arrested in Dubai.
“Scanning of the drilling machines revealed a large amount of illegal painkillers. We had to cut the drill to find the pills hidden inside. We also found plastic bags contain Captagon hidden in other parts of the machine,” Brigadier Hareb said.
The five suspects have been charged with smuggling drugs into the country and have been detained pending further investigation.
Brigadier Hareb praised the efforts of his officers in apprehending the suspects. He urged the public to call on 901 or email Dubai Police with any information related to drugs on dpan@dubaipolice.gov.ae.
