Ivory Worth Sh6.4 Million Seized At JKIA

Ivory worth Sh 6.4 million was found at the JKIA on Tuesday in a consignment destined for Bangkok, Thailand, from Maputo in Mozambique.

“The ivory had been concealed as gemstones,” said police officers in charge of screening at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi.

They said the 18 pieces of raw ivory were discovered at the screening centre prompting the seizure.

Suspected Narcotics Packaged As Coffee Samples Intercepted At Entebbe

Security has intercepted suspected narcotics disguised as coffee for export at Entebbe International Airport, Uganda Civil Aviation Authority (UCAA) officials have said.

The UCAA Spokesperson Vianney Luggya, said the suspicious cargo was disguised as coffee samples in branded packets of African Premium Coffee for export. It was detected during X-Ray screening at 10:10 pm on June 13, 2022.
“The shipper’s details bore a Ugandan name and the consignment was destined for Auckland, New Zealand. The matter was handed over to Police for further investigations. Drug trafficking through EIA is prohibited,” Mr Luggya said.

He said they have since handed over the suspicious cargo to Aviation Police for further investigations.

ASP Luke Owoyesigyire, the Kampala Metropolitan deputy police spokesperson, said they had withheld the name of the shipper for purposes of investigations.
“We have forwarded the samples to government analytical laboratory for forensic analysis. However, preliminary investigations show that it’s heroin which was packaged like coffee in disguise. We don’t have any suspect so far, but we have a lead. More details will be availed as soon as possible,” ASP Owoyesgyire said.

This comes two weeks after Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) opened the Air Cargo Control Unit at Entebbe Airport to detect illicit imports and exports and centralize information sharing systems regarding suspicious and intercepted items at the cargo centre and passenger Terminal Building.
Located at the new cargo center, the unit is the central office for officials from URA, Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA), Aviation Police, Aviation Security, and Uganda Civil Aviation Authority (UCAA).

X-Ray Center announces TSA Certification for its XRC 180-180DV 200KV Cargo Systems

The United States Transportation Security Administration has granted X-Ray Center’s XRC 180-180DV 200kV cargo system acceptance onto the “Qualified” section of the Air Cargo Security Technology List (ACSTL). XRC’s 180-180DV 200kV cargo system joins XRC’s 60-40DV, 75-55DV, 100-100DV, and 180-180DV 320 kV systems on TSA’s ACSTL, making XRC one of only a handful of companies in the world with such a wide range of tunnel sizes having been approved by TSA. XRC is one of only a few companies in the world that makes large 180-180 tunnel sized dual view x-ray scanning systems that are TSA approved, now with 200kV and 320kV generator strengths that are both TSA approved.

260kgs Of Ivory Seized At Jomo Kenyatta International Airport

About 260kgs of ivory have been seized at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA), Nairobi. The ivory was packed in 12 cartons which also contained carvings and was to be transported to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Deputy Commander, Kenya Airports Police Unit, Douglas Kirocho said the cargo was delivered to the Swissport Cargo Terminal by G4S employees on Thursday and booked for transportation with Turkish Airlines. “When security personnel scanned the packages, they detected a suspicious commodity and that is when we decided to open them today in the morning and check,” Mr Kirocho said. “We discovered that they contained 1,356 pieces that had been painted in black and brown,” he said. Mr Kirocho said the ivory with an estimated street value of Sh33.8 million had been cross-checked by the Kenya Wildlife services. A recent survey suggests the ivory could fetch as much as Sh47 million in Beijing, a prime market.