The Directorate General of Customs (DGA) reported yesterday the seizure of US$879,020, equivalent to RD$47 million 642 thousand, which were to enter the country through the Gregorio Luperon airport, in Puerto Plata, in suitcases coming from the Bahamas Islands.

It said in a note that the money was discovered when the passengers were passing their luggage through the X-ray machine by members of the General Customs Directorate (DGA), the Specialized Airport and Civil Aviation Security Corps (Cesac), and the National Drug Control Directorate (DNCD) who “observed a suspicious profile in the luggage of one of the passengers, so they checked manually and found the amount of US dollars.”

The DGA reported that two Bahamian nationals piloted the aircraft, and five passengers, including a Haitian woman and four Bahamian men, were detained and taken by security teams to be brought to justice.

The text states that the money was checked and counted by DGA authorities in the presence of the Public Prosecutor’s Office.

It informed that during the course of today, the authorities would provide more information on the case since it penalized the entry into the country of a sum exceeding US$10,000 without being declared.

The persons who tried to bring in the US$879,020 must demonstrate the legality and origin of the money and why it was not declared, as indicated by international customs and immigration regulations.

State security agencies stationed at ports and airports frequently detain large sums of money that were not declared or attempted to enter the country under disguise.