DUBAI: A customs inspector allegedly solicited Dh 30,000 worth of bribes on different occasions from several sailors for the unlawful favours of not conducting the regular search of their boats, the Court of First Instance was told. The 40-year-old Emirati is accused of stamping the exit pass of several boats with the search seal after collecting cash from the captains even when no search was conducted. His alleged wrongdoing took place from June to October.
The officer admitted in the police interrogation and public prosecution investigation that he had been in office since 1994. He was based in the Dubai Creek and his job was to verify that the boats loaded with goods comply with the law in a way that the goods they carried were identical with what the shipment statement and the content list, which they had submitted to the customs, in order for them to be granted the green light to exit the port. As of June he started soliciting money. He first asked for Dh 200 from a captain so that to speed up the clearance procedures and disregard the search routine. He confessed he collected a total of Dh 30,000 on several occasions.
On October 9, an Iranian captain, who was on his way to Iran in a boat loaded with wood, approached the inspector for the regular search. He asked for Dh 200 for quick search. He was arrested by security officers right after he collected the cash and put it in his pocket.
He told the investigators that any boat leaving the Dubai Creek has to pass through the customs point for a thorough search. He said that an inspector, who is on duty, must check and have a close look at the goods inside the boat. He has to make sure the existing goods are the same as mentioned in the customs release and receipts. That procedure must be taken before allowing any boat to leave the Dubai Creek by stamping the exit pass with a search seal.
The defendant reportedly admitted during the investigation that he would go without the routine procedure after collecting cash from the captains and then letting them pass through the exit point out without the required search. A sum of Dh 14,000 was seized from the defendant’s car which is believed to be bribe money. It is used as criminal evidence. The trial has been adjourned to December 28.
