The Thai Customs Department has announced the implementation of sniffer dogs to aid in the detection of narcotics concealed within imported and exported goods. This upgrade is aimed at bringing Thailand’s customs practices in line with international standards.
On May 8th, a ceremony was held to mark the beginning of the construction of the Thai Customs Canine Training Center in the Bang Phli district of Samut Prakan. The event was attended by international customs attaches.
Patchara Anuntasilpa, Director-General of the Customs Department, stated that while current technologies used to detect drugs and other illegal products have limitations, the use of sniffer dogs in customs handling is expected to help overcome these limitations.
Several countries such as the United States, Japan, South Korea, and Australia have established formal dog training centers and use sniffer dogs in their customs handling processes. The Thai Customs Department has consulted with these countries on how to effectively utilize dogs to detect illegal products before establishing the Samut Prakan center. At present, two customs officers are undergoing a training program on working with sniffer dogs at an institution certified by the KCS Detector Dog Training Center in Incheon.
The construction of the canine training facility comprises a one-story building and an outdoor dog-training ground on a two-rai plot of land. It is expected to be completed by the end of next month and fully operational in August. This development is expected to help enhance the capabilities of the Thai Customs Department to detect and prevent the import and export of illegal narcotics.
