Sana'a - Saba:
Qualitative technological transformations are taking place at customs offices and centers, developing services and simplifying procedures, these transformations have become a major obstacle for smugglers who attempt to devise various methods and techniques to smuggle goods and commodities.
This investigation traces the methods used by a smuggler named R. A. L. to attempt to smuggle a large quantity of cigarettes, exploiting government facilities, he attempted to deceive customs officials in an attempt to smuggle 256,687 cigarette packs by hiding them inside a locomotive tanker truck coming from the occupied territories, the cigarettes were detained at the Al-Hazm Customs Center in Al-Jawf Governorate and then transported to the Nihm Customs Center to complete legal procedures, leading to the Nihm and Bani Hashish Prosecution and Court, which are currently considering the case.
The incident began on June 28, 2023, when the locomotive arrived from the Al-Yatmah line and crossed the Al-Shajarah checkpoint, located within the geographical area of Al-Hazm District, without passing through the customs deportation office (near the checkpoint). The locomotive had not been registered according to the procedures followed for vehicles arriving from the Al-Yatmah line, this forced the customs officer on duty and a representative of the Transport Authority at the checkpoint to track the locomotive and stop it in the Al-Jawf Governorate triangle.
According to the customs officer, the locomotive driver (who later turned out to be the smuggler) stated that the reason he did not stop to complete the procedures at the customs deportation office was that the locomotive was empty, and that he was accompanied by a representative from the Anti-Narcotics Department to hand it over to a representative of the General Authority for Environmental Protection in Al-Jawf Governorate.
The customs officer confirmed that the locomotive driver, the customs control representative, and the Environment Authority representative objected to the delivery of the locomotive to the Al-Hazm Center, claiming that it was empty because it was used for waste oils, which falls under the Environment Authority's jurisdiction. However, after several phone conversations between the control operations, the customs officer, and the Environment Authority representative, the locomotive was brought into the Al-Hazm Customs Center, and a receipt document was issued by the Environment Director on the same day.
Foiling the First Stage of the Operation
The smuggler attempted to bypass the first stage of the smuggling operation using two documents. The first was a transit permit he obtained from the Sana'a Governorate branch of the General Authority for Environmental Protection for a full year, starting March 11, 2023, to transport waste oils within the governorates of the Republic, this permit was granted three months prior to the operation, the second document was a handwritten note signed by the director of the Environment Authority branch in Al-Jawf Governorate, dated June 28, 2023, stating that he had received the empty truck used to transport waste oils from a customs representative, arriving from the customs control point at Aqaba.
The smuggler attempted to mislead others by using the two documents to bypass several customs control points in preparation for completing the operation, he claimed that the truck was used to transport waste oils and was empty, in an attempt to exploit the Environment Authority representative. However, a customs officer noticed the truck passing through the Shajara checkpoint, even though the deportation office where he works is located a short distance from the checkpoint.
Failure of the Second Stage
Officers at the Al-Hazm Customs Center decided to transfer the truck to the Nihm Customs Center in Sana'a Governorate for examination by an x-ray machine, designed to detect hidden contraband, this was because the tanker was completely blocked, with only a narrow opening at the top of the tank, revealing the presence of burning oil, making it difficult to see inside.
During the approximately ten months the truck was at the Al-Hazm Center, the smuggler was unable to find any illegal solutions to smuggle the hidden cigarettes, this was despite the fact that he had given the center written consent to have the tanker removed and that he would bear full responsibility if anything hidden inside was discovered. However, he stipulated that this consent was conditional upon his inability to go to the Nihm Center, which increased the center's staff's suspicions due to the smuggler's fear of having the truck examined by the x-ray machine.
Customs Authority: Continuous Follow-up
During the period the locomotive remained at the Al-Hazm Center until its transfer to the Nihm Center on April 2, 2024, the Customs Authority leadership continued to monitor the progress of the procedures for this locomotive, noting the ambiguity surrounding it on the one hand, and the procrastination in the procedures, which led to the locomotive remaining in the Al-Hazm Center yard for ten months. Furthermore, despite the smuggler's evasion throughout this period and his refusal to have the locomotive x-rayed, he finally agreed to transfer the locomotive to the Nihm Center after hearing about the malfunction of the x-ray machine at the center, this prompted the head of the Authority, Engineer Adel Margham, to take swift action to uncover the truth, all customs employees involved in the procedures taken regarding the locomotive were referred for investigation. A committee was also formed to carry out the process of scraping the tanker, headed by Judge Fouad Al-Jarmouzi, a member of the Nihm and Bani Hashish Prosecution Office, and including members from the Public Funds Investigations, Security, and Intelligence Departments, the station's police officers, and the committee formed by the Authority.
The tanker was opened in the yard of the Nahm Customs Center, according to a report signed by the committee on June 3, 2024. The driver remained evasive after the officer at the Nahm Center investigated and confirmed the presence of concealment points and newly welded parts inside the tanker.
Stage Three (Finding the Shipment)
The smuggler did not expect anyone to discover the elaborate engineering design he used inside the tanker to deceive customs officers, examination and investigation revealed three compartments inside, the first was located at the front of the locomotive and was sealed with iron welds. Upon opening it, the committee found smuggled cigarettes inside.
The second compartment was empty and contained a small amount of flammable oil used for camouflage, this compartment contains the tanker's main opening, the third compartment, located at the rear end of the tanker, was also polished, and cigarettes were found hidden inside it in the same manner as the first compartment.
Smugglers resort to various methods and means to conceal contraband, whether drugs, medicines, pesticides, or foreign agricultural products, they hide them in secret places within vehicle structures, such as spare tires, doors, seats, next to engines, inside fuel and water tanks, and in gas cylinders and motorcycles.
Combating Smuggling Crimes
The head of the Customs Authority confirmed that the Authority achieved a qualitative leap in combating customs smuggling crimes during 2023-2024 by initiating criminal cases for all smuggling cases and following them up with judicial authorities.
The number of cases brought before public prosecutors reached 238 for various smuggling crimes, including 123 for pesticides, 92 for medicines, eight for smuggling foreign agricultural products, four for smuggling petroleum derivatives and electronic cigarettes, five for smuggling cigarettes, and six for counterfeiting.
Engineer Margham emphasized that the Authority will not hesitate to fulfill its national and humanitarian duty to prevent all forms of customs smuggling, based on its mandate and responsibilities, and will not be deterred by any obstacles that could harm the interests of the nation and its citizens.
Exploitation of Permits
To investigate why the authority's branch in Sana'a Governorate granted a one-year transit permit to the locomotive, and why the director of the authority's branch in Al-Jawf Governorate received the locomotive from the anti-trafficking representative without presenting it to the customs office, the head of the General Authority for Environmental Protection, Abdulmalik Al-Ghazali, confirmed that the authority's branches grant transit permits to locomotives carrying goods that the authority is responsible for managing, such as those loaded with scrap, waste, waste oils, plastic granules, and pesticides, he pointed out that transit permits are granted for two days or more depending on the shipment, a one-year permit may also be granted for transporting waste oils, as well as for transporting them within free governorates.
He added, "When transporting from occupied territories, a transit permit must be obtained for each shipment to ensure that it is indeed waste oil, as the annual permit may be exploited to smuggle petroleum derivatives, illegal materials, or other materials, this confirms that the smuggler exploited the permit to smuggle cigarettes from the occupied territories."
Death Locomotive on Trial
The locomotive was not only concealing a large quantity of smuggled cigarettes from the occupied territories, but it was also carrying death in every sense of the word, the smuggler deliberately concealed the cigarettes on a locomotive designated solely for transporting waste oil, and he welded all the ventilation openings shut, the tank also contained a quantity of waste oil in the compartment located in the middle of the tanker, there is suspicion that the tanker was used for drug smuggling, as a video was captured of a dog specialized in detecting hidden drugs standing by some cigarette cartons during an inspection of the locomotive by a drug enforcement team.
One of the trainers reported that the dogs detected traces of contraband, but upon opening the cartons, they found no contraband in this seizure, he explained that there is no explanation for this other than that the locomotive may have been carrying hashish inside the tanker, which is why the smell was transmitted to the cigarette packs.
According to specialists, all these conditions surrounding cigarettes render them toxic and no longer suitable for human consumption, in their natural state, they are the primary cause of cancer. So what will happen to them after being stored in a fully sealed tank containing exhaust oils?
The Case Before the Court
In the indictment for the case, the Arhab, Nihm, and Bani Hashish Prosecution presented the defendant as a fugitive from justice, the case had previously been referred to the Nihm and Bani Hashish Court on July 28, 2024, because the smuggling crime occurred within the court's jurisdiction.
Since the case is still before the Nihm and Bani Hashish Court, we met with Judge Ahmed Al-Qasari (one of the judges on the court), who stated that before Ramadan, the defendant was given an opportunity to rectify his status according to the mechanism followed by Customs in such cases.
He explained that the Customs Authority, in accordance with its procedures, makes "settlement" arrangements for such cases, and since the defendant had committed this act for the first time, the Authority must address his situation to prevent recurrence.
To understand the procedures followed in such cases, the Director General of Legal Affairs at the Customs Authority, Mohammed Al-Shami, stated, "The Authority initiated the case and filed a lawsuit against the smuggler with the aim of imposing deterrent penalties, as is the practice in major smuggling crimes. The goal is to confiscate the quantity of smuggled cigarettes and the means of transport used in the smuggling operation, in accordance with Customs Law No. (14) of 1990 and its amendments, taking into account the provisions of Article (271), which allows the Authority's head or his authorized representative to decide to confiscate the seized goods and means of transport in the event that the smugglers flee and are not identified, provided that their value does not exceed one million and 500 thousand riyals. If the value of the goods exceeds this amount, the Customs Court shall decide urgently to confiscate the seized goods."
He pointed out the importance of considering that customs cases are considered urgent, in accordance with Supreme Judicial Council Resolution No. (71) of 2018, which obligates courts to "follow the urgent rules and procedures stipulated in the Customs Law when considering and adjudicating customs cases."
According to Al-Shami, "withdrawing a case from the court to settle with the smuggler requires convincing criteria and justifications, and there are no justifications that would prompt the Authority to settle and reconcile this case. Therefore, it initiated the lawsuit to achieve the most severe penalties, because this type of smuggling contradicts the objectives of settlement, which are fundamentally based on consideration of mitigating circumstances and the public interest."
A Crime Targeting the Economy
Smuggling is not just a casual crime; it is a threat to the country's economy and security, the Customs Authority is the first line of defense, this cannot be achieved without the cooperation of all relevant parties, including through stricter penalties and the provision of the necessary tools to combat this scourge.
Foremost among these efforts is expediting the adjudication of smuggling cases to ensure immediate deterrence, there is no room for leniency or delay in prosecuting smugglers, given that combating smuggling is not solely the responsibility of the Customs Authority. Rather, it is a national battle that requires everyone's cooperation, success depends on the full cooperation of all parties to protect the country's economy and security.
M.M
Qualitative technological transformations are taking place at customs offices and centers, developing services and simplifying procedures, these transformations have become a major obstacle for smugglers who attempt to devise various methods and techniques to smuggle goods and commodities.
This investigation traces the methods used by a smuggler named R. A. L. to attempt to smuggle a large quantity of cigarettes, exploiting government facilities, he attempted to deceive customs officials in an attempt to smuggle 256,687 cigarette packs by hiding them inside a locomotive tanker truck coming from the occupied territories, the cigarettes were detained at the Al-Hazm Customs Center in Al-Jawf Governorate and then transported to the Nihm Customs Center to complete legal procedures, leading to the Nihm and Bani Hashish Prosecution and Court, which are currently considering the case.
The incident began on June 28, 2023, when the locomotive arrived from the Al-Yatmah line and crossed the Al-Shajarah checkpoint, located within the geographical area of Al-Hazm District, without passing through the customs deportation office (near the checkpoint). The locomotive had not been registered according to the procedures followed for vehicles arriving from the Al-Yatmah line, this forced the customs officer on duty and a representative of the Transport Authority at the checkpoint to track the locomotive and stop it in the Al-Jawf Governorate triangle.
According to the customs officer, the locomotive driver (who later turned out to be the smuggler) stated that the reason he did not stop to complete the procedures at the customs deportation office was that the locomotive was empty, and that he was accompanied by a representative from the Anti-Narcotics Department to hand it over to a representative of the General Authority for Environmental Protection in Al-Jawf Governorate.
The customs officer confirmed that the locomotive driver, the customs control representative, and the Environment Authority representative objected to the delivery of the locomotive to the Al-Hazm Center, claiming that it was empty because it was used for waste oils, which falls under the Environment Authority's jurisdiction. However, after several phone conversations between the control operations, the customs officer, and the Environment Authority representative, the locomotive was brought into the Al-Hazm Customs Center, and a receipt document was issued by the Environment Director on the same day.
Foiling the First Stage of the Operation
The smuggler attempted to bypass the first stage of the smuggling operation using two documents. The first was a transit permit he obtained from the Sana'a Governorate branch of the General Authority for Environmental Protection for a full year, starting March 11, 2023, to transport waste oils within the governorates of the Republic, this permit was granted three months prior to the operation, the second document was a handwritten note signed by the director of the Environment Authority branch in Al-Jawf Governorate, dated June 28, 2023, stating that he had received the empty truck used to transport waste oils from a customs representative, arriving from the customs control point at Aqaba.
The smuggler attempted to mislead others by using the two documents to bypass several customs control points in preparation for completing the operation, he claimed that the truck was used to transport waste oils and was empty, in an attempt to exploit the Environment Authority representative. However, a customs officer noticed the truck passing through the Shajara checkpoint, even though the deportation office where he works is located a short distance from the checkpoint.
Failure of the Second Stage
Officers at the Al-Hazm Customs Center decided to transfer the truck to the Nihm Customs Center in Sana'a Governorate for examination by an x-ray machine, designed to detect hidden contraband, this was because the tanker was completely blocked, with only a narrow opening at the top of the tank, revealing the presence of burning oil, making it difficult to see inside.
During the approximately ten months the truck was at the Al-Hazm Center, the smuggler was unable to find any illegal solutions to smuggle the hidden cigarettes, this was despite the fact that he had given the center written consent to have the tanker removed and that he would bear full responsibility if anything hidden inside was discovered. However, he stipulated that this consent was conditional upon his inability to go to the Nihm Center, which increased the center's staff's suspicions due to the smuggler's fear of having the truck examined by the x-ray machine.
Customs Authority: Continuous Follow-up
During the period the locomotive remained at the Al-Hazm Center until its transfer to the Nihm Center on April 2, 2024, the Customs Authority leadership continued to monitor the progress of the procedures for this locomotive, noting the ambiguity surrounding it on the one hand, and the procrastination in the procedures, which led to the locomotive remaining in the Al-Hazm Center yard for ten months. Furthermore, despite the smuggler's evasion throughout this period and his refusal to have the locomotive x-rayed, he finally agreed to transfer the locomotive to the Nihm Center after hearing about the malfunction of the x-ray machine at the center, this prompted the head of the Authority, Engineer Adel Margham, to take swift action to uncover the truth, all customs employees involved in the procedures taken regarding the locomotive were referred for investigation. A committee was also formed to carry out the process of scraping the tanker, headed by Judge Fouad Al-Jarmouzi, a member of the Nihm and Bani Hashish Prosecution Office, and including members from the Public Funds Investigations, Security, and Intelligence Departments, the station's police officers, and the committee formed by the Authority.
The tanker was opened in the yard of the Nahm Customs Center, according to a report signed by the committee on June 3, 2024. The driver remained evasive after the officer at the Nahm Center investigated and confirmed the presence of concealment points and newly welded parts inside the tanker.
Stage Three (Finding the Shipment)
The smuggler did not expect anyone to discover the elaborate engineering design he used inside the tanker to deceive customs officers, examination and investigation revealed three compartments inside, the first was located at the front of the locomotive and was sealed with iron welds. Upon opening it, the committee found smuggled cigarettes inside.
The second compartment was empty and contained a small amount of flammable oil used for camouflage, this compartment contains the tanker's main opening, the third compartment, located at the rear end of the tanker, was also polished, and cigarettes were found hidden inside it in the same manner as the first compartment.
Smugglers resort to various methods and means to conceal contraband, whether drugs, medicines, pesticides, or foreign agricultural products, they hide them in secret places within vehicle structures, such as spare tires, doors, seats, next to engines, inside fuel and water tanks, and in gas cylinders and motorcycles.
Combating Smuggling Crimes
The head of the Customs Authority confirmed that the Authority achieved a qualitative leap in combating customs smuggling crimes during 2023-2024 by initiating criminal cases for all smuggling cases and following them up with judicial authorities.
The number of cases brought before public prosecutors reached 238 for various smuggling crimes, including 123 for pesticides, 92 for medicines, eight for smuggling foreign agricultural products, four for smuggling petroleum derivatives and electronic cigarettes, five for smuggling cigarettes, and six for counterfeiting.
Engineer Margham emphasized that the Authority will not hesitate to fulfill its national and humanitarian duty to prevent all forms of customs smuggling, based on its mandate and responsibilities, and will not be deterred by any obstacles that could harm the interests of the nation and its citizens.
Exploitation of Permits
To investigate why the authority's branch in Sana'a Governorate granted a one-year transit permit to the locomotive, and why the director of the authority's branch in Al-Jawf Governorate received the locomotive from the anti-trafficking representative without presenting it to the customs office, the head of the General Authority for Environmental Protection, Abdulmalik Al-Ghazali, confirmed that the authority's branches grant transit permits to locomotives carrying goods that the authority is responsible for managing, such as those loaded with scrap, waste, waste oils, plastic granules, and pesticides, he pointed out that transit permits are granted for two days or more depending on the shipment, a one-year permit may also be granted for transporting waste oils, as well as for transporting them within free governorates.
He added, "When transporting from occupied territories, a transit permit must be obtained for each shipment to ensure that it is indeed waste oil, as the annual permit may be exploited to smuggle petroleum derivatives, illegal materials, or other materials, this confirms that the smuggler exploited the permit to smuggle cigarettes from the occupied territories."
Death Locomotive on Trial
The locomotive was not only concealing a large quantity of smuggled cigarettes from the occupied territories, but it was also carrying death in every sense of the word, the smuggler deliberately concealed the cigarettes on a locomotive designated solely for transporting waste oil, and he welded all the ventilation openings shut, the tank also contained a quantity of waste oil in the compartment located in the middle of the tanker, there is suspicion that the tanker was used for drug smuggling, as a video was captured of a dog specialized in detecting hidden drugs standing by some cigarette cartons during an inspection of the locomotive by a drug enforcement team.
One of the trainers reported that the dogs detected traces of contraband, but upon opening the cartons, they found no contraband in this seizure, he explained that there is no explanation for this other than that the locomotive may have been carrying hashish inside the tanker, which is why the smell was transmitted to the cigarette packs.
According to specialists, all these conditions surrounding cigarettes render them toxic and no longer suitable for human consumption, in their natural state, they are the primary cause of cancer. So what will happen to them after being stored in a fully sealed tank containing exhaust oils?
The Case Before the Court
In the indictment for the case, the Arhab, Nihm, and Bani Hashish Prosecution presented the defendant as a fugitive from justice, the case had previously been referred to the Nihm and Bani Hashish Court on July 28, 2024, because the smuggling crime occurred within the court's jurisdiction.
Since the case is still before the Nihm and Bani Hashish Court, we met with Judge Ahmed Al-Qasari (one of the judges on the court), who stated that before Ramadan, the defendant was given an opportunity to rectify his status according to the mechanism followed by Customs in such cases.
He explained that the Customs Authority, in accordance with its procedures, makes "settlement" arrangements for such cases, and since the defendant had committed this act for the first time, the Authority must address his situation to prevent recurrence.
To understand the procedures followed in such cases, the Director General of Legal Affairs at the Customs Authority, Mohammed Al-Shami, stated, "The Authority initiated the case and filed a lawsuit against the smuggler with the aim of imposing deterrent penalties, as is the practice in major smuggling crimes. The goal is to confiscate the quantity of smuggled cigarettes and the means of transport used in the smuggling operation, in accordance with Customs Law No. (14) of 1990 and its amendments, taking into account the provisions of Article (271), which allows the Authority's head or his authorized representative to decide to confiscate the seized goods and means of transport in the event that the smugglers flee and are not identified, provided that their value does not exceed one million and 500 thousand riyals. If the value of the goods exceeds this amount, the Customs Court shall decide urgently to confiscate the seized goods."
He pointed out the importance of considering that customs cases are considered urgent, in accordance with Supreme Judicial Council Resolution No. (71) of 2018, which obligates courts to "follow the urgent rules and procedures stipulated in the Customs Law when considering and adjudicating customs cases."
According to Al-Shami, "withdrawing a case from the court to settle with the smuggler requires convincing criteria and justifications, and there are no justifications that would prompt the Authority to settle and reconcile this case. Therefore, it initiated the lawsuit to achieve the most severe penalties, because this type of smuggling contradicts the objectives of settlement, which are fundamentally based on consideration of mitigating circumstances and the public interest."
A Crime Targeting the Economy
Smuggling is not just a casual crime; it is a threat to the country's economy and security, the Customs Authority is the first line of defense, this cannot be achieved without the cooperation of all relevant parties, including through stricter penalties and the provision of the necessary tools to combat this scourge.
Foremost among these efforts is expediting the adjudication of smuggling cases to ensure immediate deterrence, there is no room for leniency or delay in prosecuting smugglers, given that combating smuggling is not solely the responsibility of the Customs Authority. Rather, it is a national battle that requires everyone's cooperation, success depends on the full cooperation of all parties to protect the country's economy and security.
M.M
