Dubai: Dubai Police arrested two men as part of a
multi-agency operation that led to the seizure of 1.5 tons of cocaine worth
around Dh1.5 billion and eleven arrests in the UK, Spain and Dubai.
Major General Khamis Mattar Al Mazeina, Dubai Police
Chief, said one of the two men arrested in Dubai on December 1, was the
mastermind behind the operation.
The drugs, he said were smuggled from Colombia to Spain,
where it was going to be processed in a lab.
He said that Lt. General Shaikh Saif Bin Zayed Al Nahyan,
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior closely followed the
operation, due to its importance.
According to the National Crime Agency (NCA), which
provided the intelligence for the operation, a container was seized in
Valencia, Spain, in which the drugs were disguised as sacks of charcoal on
wooden pallets.
Forensics revealed that the pallets were made of
compressed cocaine powder made to look like wood, and some of the sacks
contained cocaine disguised as charcoal.
Al Maziena said all the arrests were coordinated across
all countries.
Four of the arrests were made in the UK, Five in Spain and
two in Dubai. The men arrested in the UK and Dubai, were all UK nationals.
The NCA said they arrested a 44-year-old at Liverpool
Airport, along with a 54-year-old and a 50 year-old in a car park, while
Merseyside Police arrested a 46-year-old at an address in Liverpool.
Dubai Police’s Anti-Narcotic Department arrested L. R. A,
39, and his assistant, 38, at a luxury apartment in Dubai.
Another five men, two Colombians, two Peruvians and a
Spaniard were arrested on December 3 by the Spanish National Police, the NCA
said in a statement.
Maj Gen Al Mazeina said L.R.A. was under their scrutiny
since 2013, as they suspected him of drug-related crimes in his country, but
there was no solid evidence to link him to any of the crimes.
The suspect would frequent Dubai a lot and spend long
periods of time here, but he did not carry out any of his operations in Dubai.
“This is a great achievement for the Ministry of Interior.
Lt General Shaikh Saif received a letter of thanks from the NCA for its role in
the operation,” he said.
When L. R. A and his partner were arrested, Dubai Police
seized mobile phones and documents that linked them to the 1.5 tons shipments,
as well as to money laundering operations.
The two men are currently in Dubai Police custody awaiting
extradition.
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