DGA seizes more than 400,000 weapons and ammunition in eight months

Santo Domingo, DR
As of 17 August 2022, the seizure of firearms and ammunition grew by 65.8% compared to 2018, which was the highest in the pre-pandemic years, the Directorate General of Customs (DGA) reported, after highlighting that such operations are aligned with its fierce fight against the illegal transfer of goods.

The DGA indicated that, so far this year, seizures of these devices, which were intended to be illegally introduced into the country, exceeded 401,117 units, a figure higher than those seized in 2021, when they reached 300,791.

In addition, it was reported that in only six months of the implementation of the modern RAPISCAN X-ray scanner model Eagle P60-S, of North American manufacture, at the Port of Río Haina, 111,899 units of ammunition and firearms have been seized.

Eduardo “Yayo” Sanz Lovatón, director general of Customs, reiterated that this entity would continue to firmly combat the illegal transfer of merchandise through the country’s ports, airports, and border customs,

Sanz Lovatón also emphasized that, since the installation of the X-ray scanner last February, the agency has dealt heavy blows to smuggling and that the tool is highly efficient in detecting million-dollar caches and combating the illicit trafficking of firearms and ammunition.

Historically, the Dominican Republic went from confiscating 241,991 military artifacts in 2018 to 401,117 in 2022, the highest figure in the last five years.