Over a year since the revival of its K9 Unit, the CNMI Division of Customs Services replaced its aging drug-detector dogs with three new ones to further beef up border security. <\/p>\n
Customs Director Joe Mafnas confirmed with Saipan Tribune yesterday that two new dogs have been in use for weeks now, while a third one just arrived this week.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese new dogs replaced the ones that were already old. We were able to secure the new dogs using federal grants through the [Criminal Justice Planning Agency],\u201d Mafnas said.<\/p>\n
A drug-detector dog demonstration is tentatively set for Friday.<\/p>\n
The Labrador dogs were bought from the U.S. mainland, he added.<\/p>\n
Mafnas said the dogs that were decommissioned were put up for adoption.<\/p>\n
The use of drug-detector dogs is an added tool to detect drugs in incoming passengers, luggage, cargoes, and post office packages, complementing manual checks by Customs personnel at ports of entries.<\/p>\n
Gov. Eloy S. Inos brought back Mafnas to his previous post as Customs director, leading to last year\u2019s revival of the CNMI Customs Services Division\u2019s K9 Unit\u2014once touted a \u201cmodel\u201d in the Pacific but had been idle since June 2012 for lack of funding and certified drug-detector dog handlers.<\/p>\n
Mafnas said yesterday they have one new K9 handler, joining the two certified K9 handlers. Each of them is assigned a drug-detector dog. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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