Hon Nicky Wagner

Minister of Customs

26 June 2016

Five new detector dogs for Customs

Detector Dog Team

Customs Minister Nicky Wagner says Customs detector dogs that are proving their worth, having sniffed out almost $10 million of undeclared and concealed cash at the border in three years since their introduction.

“Customs dogs and their handlers play an important role in targeting and identifying criminal activities and networks. They help to protect New Zealand from money laundering and detecting the movements of large sums of cash that could be linked to illicit activities,” Ms Wagner says.

“Budget 2016 has allocated over $500,000 funding for five additional dogs bringing the total number of detection teams from 13 to 18. This will be a big boost to Customs’ detection capabilities and help provide greater coverage, more assurance, and an extra layer of enforcement at the border.

“In 2015, detector dogs made 202 cash indications, sniffing out more than $3.7 million. This year alone has seen just over $1.5 million intercepted by cash detector dogs. In most cases, passengers filled in a border cash report and kept their money.

“While it’s not illegal to carry large sums of cash, passengers need to declare amounts over $10,000 so Customs can confirm that the money is legitimate.

“Detector dogs ensure that people comply with the rules around large sums of cash and sends a clear signal to criminals that Customs can and will stop illegal cash movements at the border,” Ms Wagner says.

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