UAE- Spotlight on drugs, money laundering

(MENAFN- Khaleej Times)  Lt-General Dhahi Khalfan Tamim, Commander-in-Chief of the Dubai Police, said drug use has become one of the complicated issues in the Arab world. The challenges faced by anti-narcotic officers in the countries and the factors assisting the criminal gangs to exploit people in the region include the geographical location, porous borders and lack of effective legislation. He was speaking on the opening day of the two-day International Hemaya Forum to discuss drug issues in Dubai on Wednesday. Younus Yusuf Al Mualem, Head of the Anti-Money Laundering and Financial Crimes Section of the Dubai Police, presented a paper on the relationship between international drug smuggling and the growth of money laundering activities. He said the high demand for drugs leads to increased production which, in turn, leads to the opening of new markets, and the high profitability leads to more money laundering and organised crimes, threatening peace. The channels of money laundering include money transfer through banks and exchange offices and through alternative methods including parcels, he said. He cited the movement of an Indian suspect, R.M.Sh., across countries in three years and the air miles he earned from an airline. He had travelled most of the days and spent only 388 days in the UAE in these years. The total money which he brought from Europe through Frankfurt and Dusseldorf airports reached Dh71.528 million from one exchange office, Dh30 million from another and Dh111.5 million from yet another. The suspect crisscrossed Italy, India, France, Germany, Singapore and Australia. He said the money laundering mechanism in the UAE focuses more on money transfer between an Asian country and the UAE. Recently, the UAE received information about international companies in India that transferred money through a reputed courier company. When a consignment received by it was referred to the customs officials, the latter found boxes containing money and arms. Dr Hakim Abdul Rahman, a consultant of the Commander-in-Chief of the Ras Al Khaimah Police, presented a paper on the international routes for smuggling drugs and psychotropic substances and spoke about organised crimes which financé drug smuggling through international borders. He said drug traffickers not only break anti-drug laws but also laws governing financial institutions, mailing, imports and exports, and they also resort to bribing and blackmailing.