- Customs Director Bandar Al-Raheeli said that the quantity of drugs were seized through five smuggling attempts
- Authorities recovered 81 heroin capsules from the passenger’s stomach, carrying in total 589 grams of the banned drug
JEDDAH: Customs authorities at Saudi Arabia’s Jeddah Airport have seized and foiled five attempts to smuggle 822 grams of heroin into the Kingdom, as well as an amount of the illegal drug “shabu” methamphetamine pills weighing over 1,700 grams.
Customs Director Bandar Al-Raheeli said that the quantity of drugs were seized through five smuggling attempts, noting that some of the contraband was found inside a female passenger’s stomach during a routine inspection.
Authorities recovered 81 heroin capsules from the passenger’s stomach, carrying in total 589 grams of the banned drug.
Al-Raheeli also said that more heroin capsules were seized in another smuggling attempt using the same method, during which 32 capsules of the drug were discovered inside the stomach of another passenger who was arriving in the Kingdom.
He explained that the procedures of smuggling contraband inside an individual’s stomach is widely used by drug smugglers to illicitly enter drugs like heroin and cocaine into the Kingdom.
He praised the customs inspectors’ ability to read body language, in addition to the technique used to inspect individual’s bowels to prevent the entry of illegal drugs.
He also said that customs officials also foiled three other attempts to smuggle a quantity of the illegal “shabu” drug weighing 1,720.10 grams, which were hidden in the hand luggage of three different passengers coming to the Kingdom.