Customs in the fight against drugs - Part 2 - Use of scanners and dogs to detect drugs

Police dogs are trained to detect drugs

Lao Bao Customs detector detects suspicious signs in barrel speakers and the results were drugs most foul. Photo: Quang Tri customs

Unusual signs in the speakers

In the last days of 2018, the flow of people and means carrying out procedures through Lao Bao international border gate (Quang Tri) wasmore bustling than usual. In particular, the Customs forces paid special attention to a vehicle carrying the control board of Thua Thien-Hue carrying special packages.

At 8:24 am on December 11, 2018, the Lao Bao Border Gate Customs Branch (Quang Tri Customs Department) carried out re-import procedures for passenger cars with the license plate of 75B-01174. After the registration was completed, at the inspection location, during the screening of luggage and goods on this car, customs officers discovered that a suspected drug mark was hidden in two boxes, the leaders of the Customs Branch and the Customs Control Group directed the customs officers to use the original verification dogs to indicate the drug signs. These two enclosures were broughtby a Laoperson with a car to Vietnam (Ho Chi Minh City), so the owner of the suspicious drug is not identified.

To continue to fight against the drugs, Lao Bao border gate Customs Department in collaboration with the Drug Control Control Team (Quang Tri Customs Department) organised a quick consultation on the next treatment plan with the leader ofthe border guard station at Lao Bao international border gate (Quang Tri Border Guard). To ensure secrecy and tocatch the consignees, the units agreed to assign Lao Bao Border Gate Border Guard Station and the Drug Control and Prevention Team (Quang Tri Customs Department) and relevant forces of applying reconnaissance and object tracking methods, and deployingreconnaissance personnel to closely monitor the vehicle during the journey from Lao Bao border gate to Ho Chi Minh City - domestic delivery point.

The results of the investigation, at 14:00 on 12/12/2018, at the Eastern bus station (Binh Thanh District, Ho Chi Minh City), the anti-drug forces of the Quang Tri Border Guards coordinate with the related forces seized 2 subjects Nguyen Dang Khoa (SN 1979, ward 10, district 3, Ho Chi Minh City) and Hoang Minh Nhut (SN 1988, Ward 3, District 4, Ho Chi Minh City) receiving twosuspicious barrel speakers containing the above drugs in the East Bus Station area (Ward 26, Binh Thanh District, HCMC). As a result of the initial search, the related force discovered 19 kilograms of synthetic drugs, which were carefully hidden in two barrel speakers.

Quang Tri Customs Department has always raised vigilance, especially the effectively use of equipment and professional dogs in the fight against drugs. This is a great experience as example in the context of illegal cross-border drug traffic that is going through many complicated developments. In particular, there is a risk of stealing and disguising large quantities of drugs in immigration vehicles and import and export goods to be brought into the country like the case discovered by Quang Tri Customs Department.

Focus on coordination

According to Quang Tri Customs Department, the unit has 70 civil servants working on drug control, including 28 full-time civil servants. To implement this task effectively, Quang Tri Customs Department has always been active in developing a battleplan.

Talking with reporters, leaders of Quang Tri Customs Department said: The work of drug prevention and control is always paid special attention by units. Especially since the implementation of Directive 4550 / CT-TCHQ on August 2, 2018 of the General Director of Customs on enhancing drug prevention and combat in the area of customs operation. Accordingly, the leaders of Quang Tri Customs Department directed the Customs Control Force, especially the anti-drug task force, to strengthen information collection and operation of the lines and groups. At the same time, they have to well implement the regulation on coordination with relevant forces in the area (Police, Border Guard, and Coast Guard) to share information and coordinate in investigation.

The representative of Quang Tri Customs Department said that since the Directive 4550 was implemented, the unit has coordinated with related forces to fight 10 cases of selling, transporting and storing narcotics andseizing13 subjectswith15,047 synthetic narcotic tablets and more than 20,500 grams of synthetic drugs.

In the coming time, Quang Tri Customs Department will continue to ensurethe entire unit improves its sense of responsibility in fighting drug crimes. At the same time, it willorganise propaganda and mobilisation of people, especially key localities, to combat those who commit criminal acts.Along with that, attention should be paid to the timely posting of information on drug crime arrests.Quang Tri Customs Department will continue to strengthen coordination with the relevant forces of Laos in the country in fighting drug crimes.

Professional dogs of Customs directly detect drugs On April 22, 2019, the Team of management, training and used professional dogs (Team 8, Department of Anti-Smuggling Investigation, General Department of Customs) assigned civil servants to use inspection dogs at the Post Office of the customs clearance and security screening under the Northern International Postal Exploitation Center (Soc Son, Hanoi). At 16:00 on the same day, when he was on duty, suddenly a dog had reactions to an envelope like barking and wagging his tail. This is a sign of drug discovery. This envelope was sent from England to an individual in Hoan Kiem District, Ha Noi Under the above sign, Team 8 presided over in coordination with the Northern Anti-Smuggling Control Team (Team 5, Department of Anti-Smuggling Investigation), Express Customs Department (Hanoi Customs Department), Post Office of Customs Procedures and Security Screening (Northern International Postal Center) shall open envelopes for inspection. According to the test results, in the envelope weretwodrug packages, identified as cocaine, with the total volume about 28 grams (including packaging). Although the number of drugs is not large, it is worth noting that this is the first time the Customs dogs have directly detected drugs. And the above case shows that the recent illegal drug transportation has added more new methods and behaviors than before, it needs more positive and drastic changes from the management agencies, including Customs agency.