The General Authority of Customs (GAC) inspectors at the Hamad International Airport have foiled separate attempts to smuggle in 17.8kg of marijuana and evade paying customs charges for 6.5kg of gold bars and coins worth more than QR600,000.

The seized marijuana was spotted when an air cargo employee doubted a cargo coming from an African country and wrapped in a strange manner. When the cargo was scanned and searched manually by GAC inspectors, marijuana was found hidden within food containers after being mixed with various types of food to avoid detection.

The seized gold was found with an Asian traveller coming from another GCC country. He approached the GAC officers asking for a form to list the gold pieces he had as a transit traveller. The customs officer reviewed the pieces he had in his bag and gave him a statement to the effect.

But, when the traveller was proceeding to finalise his travel procedures, the customs officer in charge doubted his conduct and referred him to another officer for a full search. Small packets were found under his belt inside his clothes, and others were found tied to his thighs. A total of 84 pieces of gold were recovered.

GAC president Ahmed bin Ali al-Mohannadi honoured the two GAC employees who managed to foil the smuggling attempts. He also affirmed that GAC would continue to fully support its employees and raise their level of alertness through various professional training courses.

Air Cargo Management and Private Airports director Ahmed al-Khanji also praised the efficiency and alertness of the employees concerned.