Reward for customs inspectors who report bribes

DUBAI // Customs inspectors who report attempts to bribe them will get rewards of up to 20 per cent of the value of what they have been offered,a senior official has said.

"We have had a high number of reports of bribery attempts, but due to the high monthly salaries offered, cash incentives upon arrests and the yearly awards offered to inspectors, the inspectors are reporting it," said Mohammed al Merri, the Dubai Customs cargo operations chief executive, in the Arabic-language daily newspaper Emarat Al Youm.

"Inspectors face a lot of bribery attempts and are continually surrounded by financial offers from contraband smugglers attempting to ship contraband."

More than 1,100 inspectors work in various locations, from Dubai's ports, to the emirate's airports, to border crossing checkpoints.

A man caught recently while trying to smuggle counterfeit items offered a customs official a large cash bribe, Mr al Merri said. The inspector took the amount, which has not been revealed, as part of a sting operation by police and prosecutors. The number of bribery attempts this year has not been released.

amustafa@thenational.ae