'Mule' admits smuggling drugs worth Dh480,000

An Iranian man was found to have ingested 80 capsules of crystal meth weighing 800 grams after he stopped in Dubai Airport.

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DUBAI // A drug mule was caught at Dubai International Airport with crystal methamphetamine worth about Dh480,000 (US$130,700), a court heard yesterday. The Iranian visitor MM, 28, was stopped and searched after a Customs officer viewed his itinerary, which showed him travelling from Tehran via the Iranian city of Bander Abbas to Dubai, known as a common route for crystal meth traffickers.

MM was found to have ingested 80 capsules of crystal meth weighing 800 grams after he was x-rayed at the airport. He was arrested last November and taken to Dubai Hospital to pass the capsules, records showed. M M confessed that he was asked to smuggle the drugs, without providing further details. He pleaded guilty to smuggling charges before the Dubai Criminal Court of First Instance yesterday. The presiding judge, El Saeed Bargouth, will sentence MM on May 18.

The value of the drugs smuggled is based on a Dubai Customs valuation of the narcotic's worth at Dh600 per gram. Crystal meth is a pure, man-made, smokable form of methamphetamine that is extremely addictive. Its use can lead to severe physiological and psychological dependence and can cause erratic, violent behaviour. amustafa@thenational.ae