March 11 2008
MINISTER TO FAREWELL ONE OF CUSTOMS FINEST
The Minister for Home Affairs, Bob Debus has today made a presentation to Customs $27 million drug detection dog.
Recently retired Customs dog, Utah, was responsible for detecting more than 150kg of illicit drugs including cocaine, heroin and MDMA (ecstasy) in his seven years of service to the organisation.
One of Utah’s most significant detections was in July 2003 when he assisted with the search of a sea cargo container at Port Botany. During the search, Utah identified two large metal water filters which were later found to contain over 390,000 tablets of MDMA. The MDMA had a street value in excess of $27 million.
Utah was born in the Customs National Breeding and Development Centre and was the first dog to be trained to search both passengers and cargo in the Customs Detector Dog Program.
“Utah has been one of the most successful drug detection dogs in the program’s history and his seizure statistics are some of the best held by any drug dog in Australia,” Mr Debus said.
“The Australian Customs breeding and training program is held in very high esteem by various agencies, both nationally and internationally.
“Since the commencement of the breeding program in 1993, a number of government agencies from around the world have sent their officers to train in our world class facilities.”
“The Customs Detector Dog Program is continually evolving with dogs now being trained to detect explosives and hazardous chemical precursors.”
“As we move forward into the future in a world of heightened security awareness, the Australian public can rest assured that the Government is committed to the long term future and advancement of the breeding and training program.
Graduating from his initial training program in 2001, Utah served with four dog handlers in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and Perth. Utah now resides with his second handler in Yass.
The Minister also opened the seventh Customs Firearms and Explosive Detector Dog (FEDD) course. Over the thirteen week course handlers and the dogs will be trained to detect firearms and explosives.
Media Contact: Samantha Wills 0448 721 372