News item | 01-03-2024 | 13:02
The Customs services of the Netherlands and Brazil will jointly take additional measures to combat drug smuggling. State Secretary Aukje de Vries of Finance (Benefits and Customs) made this appointment with the Deputy Minister of the Federal Tax Authorities of Brazil Adriana Gomes Rêgo. In a Letter of Intent they recorded that they exchange scan images of containers. They also agreed to work together to stop the smuggling of synthetic drugs through the post and they will exchange knowledge about underwater robots.
State Secretary De Vries: “The Netherlands and Brazil are both countries with good infrastructure. Criminals take advantage of this by smuggling drugs. These drug smugglers do not shy away from any means. That’s why we have to stay one step ahead of them. That is only possible if we work together. Brazil, like us, is highly motivated to tackle criminals. That is why it is good that we are now taking the next step in our collaboration.”
Exchanging scan images for cocaine smuggling
The State Secretary and the Deputy Minister signed a Letter of Intent at the Brazilian Ministry of Finance. They agreed to strengthen cooperation when it comes to exchanging scan images of containers to combat cocaine smuggling. Customs officers in Brazil and the Netherlands then scan the same container and compare the images. If the images differ, this may indicate that cocaine was placed in the container at the port site before leaving Brazil. In the long term, the countries want to work on automatic image recognition, so that a system can indicate whether a container is likely to contain drugs.
Drugs in the mail
The countries also agreed to expand cooperation when it comes to preventing drug smuggling by post. Synthetic drugs, such as ecstasy, are sent to Brazil by post from the Netherlands. Dutch Customs is developing an algorithm to recognize mail items suspected of containing narcotics. Customs services will share their knowledge about combating drugs by mail, so that Brazil can check incoming mail more effectively.
Underwater robots
The services in both countries see that smugglers sometimes hide the drugs on the outside of container ships. The narcotics are then below the waterline of the ship. Dutch customs uses underwater robots to detect and intercept the drugs. Brazilian customs also wants to check more intensively below the waterline. The countries have agreed to share knowledge about the use of these underwater robots.
The measures should be an important step in the fight against organized crime, both in Brazil and the Netherlands.