Woman caught smuggling 5.6kg of cocaine at Dubai International Airport

A female traveller arriving from a Latin American country was intercepted at the Dubai International Airport and found to have been attempting to smuggle 5.6kg of cocaine.

At the terminal’s checkpoint, the Dubai Customs officers grew suspicious of the passenger, leading them to flag her luggage for a routine X-ray scan which spotted an abnormal density at the bottom of her suitcase.

The woman was stopped by the inspection officers and was asked to provide her passport for identity verification.

Asked if she had anything to declare, she replied in the negative. However upon searching the bag, inspectors discovered a secret pocket inside the inner lining. It was loaded with black plastic sacks wrapped in transparent adhesive. They contained a white powder, which after examination turned out to be cocaine, weighing 3.2 kilograms.

Careful inspection of the bag’s contents went on to find another 2.473 grams cocaine concealed in bottles of body-care products, including shampoo and moisturizing body creams, according to official news agency WAM.

“The UAE is a global model to follow in curbing the trafficking of illicit drugs and safeguarding society from their dangers. Some passengers use creative tricks to hide prohibited materials, but our highly-trained inspectors and advanced systems can effectively thwart smuggling attempts,” said Ibrahim Kamali, director of Passenger Operations Department.

Earlier this month, the Abu Dhabi Police intercepted 1.5 tonnes of heroin shipment. The Anti-Drug Section at the ADP’s Criminal Investigation Department (CID) detected a suspicious shipment that arrived from a neighbouring country at Khalifa Port, meant to travel to a European country. The heroin shipment was worth some Dhs150m.