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Drugs hidden in a phonograph seized by Ho Chi Minh City Customs Department. Photo: T.H

“Export” over 6kg drugs

Tan Son Nhat International Airport Customs Branch arrested an illegal drug shipment of exported goods with over 6kg of methamphetamine. Specifically, 5 March 2019, the Branch processed Customs procedures for an export shipment in the form of a non-commercial gift named by an individual to carry out procedures to export to Hong Kong, including 3 packages weighing 33kg. The inspection results showed that besides declared items, there were 6 plastic bags, weighing 6.02 kg hidden in the shipment. The Branch took the sample for verification at the Criminal Science Division of Ho Chi Minh Police. The verification results showed that it was positive for methamphetamine. The Branch coordinated with other competent agencies to expand the investigation of the case. This is a new method that smugglers use to transit drugs from Vietnam to other countries. Thanks to experience and intelligence information, Tan Son Nhat International Airport Customs Branch’s collaboration discovered and arrested this shipment of a large quantity of drugs.

Previously, on 30 January and 11 February 2019, the Import and Export Cargo Customs Procedures Team under Tan Son Nhat International Airport Customs Branch, detected and arrested 2 cases of illegal marijuana transportation, with the total weight of 2.18 kg contained in gift packages sent from the US to Vietnam.

According to the Ho Chi Minh City Customs Department, the smuggling, trade frauds and illegal transportation of drugs in the city in the first months of 2019 took place sophisticatedly, especially the illegal drug transportation in Tan Son Nhat International Airport and express delivery area of goods.

According to the leader of the Tan Son Nhat International Airport Customs Branch, the illegal transportation of dried marijuana from the US to Vietnam is significant, and the Branch has deployed many special plans to working teams to effectively prevent the abuse of hiding drugs in packages sent to Vietnam via aviation.

Focus on fighting against smuggling

The smuggling, trade fraud and illegal transportation of drugs in Ho Chi Minh City have become more and more complicated and with many new tricks.

According to Mr. Huynh Nam, the leader of Anti-drug Enforcement Team of Ho Chi Minh City Customs Department, drugs have been illegally transported to Ho Chi Minh City mainly via aviation, express delivery services and post office. Drug smugglers regularly abuse the import and export regime, especially by non-commercial import and export regimes (donations and gift) to hide drugs. Drugs illegally imported to Ho Chi Minh City are cannabis, methamphetamine, ecstasy (MDMA) from the US, European countries such as the Netherlands, Germany, Belgium, etc. In which, the Tan Son Nhat International Airport is still a targeted area and is a high risk entranceway for transiting drugs, especially for exporting heroine and pre-substances, importing cocaine, marijuana, synthetic drugs and ecstasy.

The international postal and express routes is the key route for the import of medicines containing addictive, psychotropic, synthetic drugs and ecstasy in the form of gifts and donations. Before the Lunar New Year, many smugglers employ sophisicated methods to hide drugs in gift packages to send to Vietnam via express delivery.

On 29 January 2019, the Express Cargo Customs Branch coordinated with the Anti-Drug Enforcement Team under Ho Chi Minh City Customs Department to inspect 7 gift packages and detected 8 kg of ecstasy and methamphetamine. These packages were declared on the Bill of Lading as phonographs, personal effects, water filters, sent from Belgium, the Netherlands, France, Malaysia ... to Vietnam via express delivery. “Previously, we inspected a package sent from France and detected 2.2 kg of ecstasy MDMA hidden inside a phonograph in the package,” Mr. Nam said.

Facing the increased and sophisticated illegal transportation of drugs via aviation, the leader of Ho Chi Minh City Customs Department has requested units to synchronously implement Customs operations and drug control measures by using sniffer dogs and specialized equipment to promptly detect drugs, new tricks and methods of drug criminals for actively fighting against smuggling, and focus on preventing and combating effectively the illegal drug transportation and trafficking across border gates.