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#ShowFilm98
#Border Patrol
#Border Patrol
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Short filmTranscript
00:01Aotearoa, New Zealand is a land apart.
00:04Blue ocean, big skies, massive mountains.
00:09Despite the physical boundaries, our border is constantly threatened with as many risks
00:14as other countries.
00:16Drugs, illegal immigrants, pests, and disease.
00:24But the nation's protectors are ever vigilant.
00:26Customs, immigration, and biosecurity officers work day and night to keep us safe.
00:32Definitely not baby powder.
00:34The front line of defence, New Zealand's Border Patrol.
00:49This time on Border Patrol.
00:51Do you have any drugs on you at the moment?
00:53Which one of these passengers' possessions puts Customs drug detector dog Yadi into overdrive?
01:03Oh, each side too.
01:05Biosecurity New Zealand uncovers a potentially cursed consignment.
01:09This is an interesting colour octopus.
01:11The exporter is an earth witch.
01:14And a passenger with interview-induced amnesia.
01:17What's the purpose of your travel to New Zealand today?
01:21What do you remember?
01:23It's morning at Auckland International Airport.
01:35A young couple from Brazil is being questioned by New Zealand customs officer Purushoth.
01:41So what's the plan in New Zealand?
01:45Why have you guys come here?
01:46To work here in Queenstown.
01:49Cleaning.
01:50What work are you going to do in Queenstown?
01:52Cleaning.
01:53Cleaning?
01:54Yeah.
01:55Yeah.
01:56And do you have any documents for that job?
01:57Yeah, we have work visas.
01:58Do you have like an employment contract?
02:00Yeah.
02:01Do you have all that?
02:02No.
02:03The couple's visa does allow them to work while in New Zealand, so Purushoth's focus shifts
02:07to what they're bringing with them.
02:09Often when you get concealments, you're looking for damage in like the inside of the suitcase.
02:14Tears or, you know, compartments, any damage to the suitcase could be an indication of a concealment.
02:22While he completes his checks, nearby a fellow officer, Hayden, is screening a passenger off the same flight
02:28who was flagged at passport control.
02:31He's come through the primary processing line upstairs where they've asked him a few questions
02:36and he's given a few interesting answers, so they've referred him downstairs to us.
02:41Do you have family?
02:42Yes.
02:43Yes?
02:44Yes?
02:45Yes?
02:46Yes.
02:47The search of the man's luggage has already turned up whatever these are, and a small amount
02:51of cannabis.
02:52This is obviously a pretty good sign that we need to, you know, keep checking further and
02:57see if it's indicative of anything else that could be in the bags.
03:06Meanwhile, Purushoth's search finds nothing of interest in the couple's luggage,
03:10so he moves on to an iron swab to test for things he can't see.
03:23Those gloves are coming back for the Ampirame.
03:26Upstairs, while hundreds of passengers pour off a large flight from Kuala Lumpur, Immigration
03:35Officer Pratesh is on the lookout for one individual in particular.
03:40Looking for a Malaysian national, he spent 66 days in New Zealand on his previous travel.
03:47He's travelled this time with no return ticket.
03:50We suspect that he may be here to seek employment or look for employment.
03:55Hello.
03:56Hi.
03:57Just confirm your full name.
04:00So I'll get you to follow me to the office.
04:03We'll have a chat over there.
04:04Okay?
04:05Take a seat.
04:06In his interview, Pratesh aims to get to the bottom of the man's intentions.
04:11Whether he's able to finance a New Zealand holiday is a big indicator.
04:15How much money do you have on yourself today?
04:18Mr Officer, he has Malaysian money, 1,000 ringgit and also human currency, $150.
04:25How much money on your debit card and how much on his credit card?
04:29He does not have any application on his phone to actually show the amount
04:34because those applications are installed on his sister's mobile.
04:39Sorry, on whose mobile?
04:42On his sister.
04:45If the bank accounts are in fact his, why can only his sister access them?
04:50He needs to be able to show me the funds that he tells me about.
04:54Okay?
04:55Can he show me proof of the funds that he has on him today, please?
05:00And that's all?
05:11Less than 200 New Zealand dollars is not going to get him far.
05:16Tell me, what's the purpose of your travel to New Zealand today?
05:21He just wanna explore, go around in Auckland?
05:27Can he tell me where he will visit in Auckland this time?
05:32I think...
05:35Itinerary.
05:36No, no, no.
05:42Has he actually read the itinerary?
05:46So tell me, what do you remember?
05:49Oh...
05:50Back down in the customs red zone, Officer Purushoth has just had an indication
06:03this couple's bags might contain more than just clothes.
06:08This couple's coming back for methamphetamine.
06:11Customs dog handler Ian and drug detector dog Yadi
06:15are brought in to go over the passengers and their possessions.
06:20Which bags is he sort of...
06:22Um, so...
06:23Which side is he interested in?
06:24It's his body.
06:25His body?
06:26Yeah.
06:27Um, like his pants.
06:28Before the man can be searched, Yadi is off on a strong signal from somewhere else.
06:34A solo traveller's suitcase.
06:37It seems there might be more than THC, handbags and handcuffs in this passenger's possession.
06:47Customs need to eliminate the possibility that either man has drugs on their body.
06:52One by one, the men are taken to separate search rooms.
06:56And Hayden to search, cat B in room 2 was negative.
07:09Both men are clear of concealments on their body,
07:12but there are still strong suspicions about the solo traveller's cases.
07:17It's pretty heavy, so we're gonna x-ray them both and just see what we find.
07:21Blue indicates metal, green, plastic, and orange, something organic.
07:31Oh, each side too.
07:44In the New Zealand customs red zone,
07:46a couple off a flight from South America are being questioned by Officer Purushoth
07:51after a swab of their bags identified traces of methamphetamine.
07:57Do you have any drugs on you at the moment?
08:02A personal search revealed nothing,
08:04so Purushoth is conducting a more thorough search called a seed search.
08:09How come this is open? How come this wasn't closed?
08:13I don't, I don't know, I don't...
08:15Do you remember having it closed, or...?
08:18It was always open?
08:19Ah, no, it's always open.
08:20That's fine.
08:23No, it's all right, you can go back and sit down.
08:24OK.
08:27The iron swab gives us traces of narcotics,
08:29so it doesn't mean there's actual substance found.
08:32The couple may have just been in the vicinity of methamphetamine back in Brazil.
08:40They've told me they're going to be here for two years,
08:42essentially working in the cleaning industry.
08:47Everything here does seem consistent with a long stay.
08:51No further evidence of drugs were found,
08:53and the pair were cleared to enter the country.
08:56A fellow passenger from the same flight, however,
08:59is still a concern to customs.
09:02X-rays show something is hidden in the lining of his suitcases.
09:06It's showing inconsistencies on the image for both suitcases on both ends,
09:11so it looks like there's something there for both of them.
09:14The bags are taken to a secure search area,
09:16where Hayden's colleague Sarah can take a closer look.
09:19Here you can see the glue and the tape.
09:27So that's quite obvious that there's bulging there.
09:34We've got a large blue parcel.
09:42There's another blue package that's vacuum sealed.
09:46By the time Sarah is finished, she has four large packages in total.
09:53They have vacuum packed each package with carbon paper
09:57to try and get it through our X-rays,
10:01which clearly didn't work.
10:09The concealments are packed full of white powder, but what is it?
10:13Cocaine.
10:14Just a little over four kilos.
10:24The 4.2 kilos of cocaine would have been worth $1.9 million
10:29if it had made it into the community.
10:32It's now going to be referred on to our investigation unit.
10:35So this is a great profile from the customs team,
10:38and it's a really good day for us,
10:40and it's great to know that the work we do
10:42is going to stop this sort of stuff getting onto the streets.
10:46The passenger was convicted of importing a Class A controlled drug
10:49and sentenced to four and a half years in prison.
10:52Back at Immigration New Zealand, Officer Pratesh is interviewing a Malaysian national
11:01who claims his sister organised his six-day holiday,
11:04and he's not familiar with the details.
11:06Basically, you can't remember once you just follow anything that listed on his itinerary.
11:13Has he actually read the itinerary?
11:17I did not have a chance to go through.
11:19So what you're telling me is that you have had this itinerary in your pocket through the flight
11:28and have arrived into New Zealand, but you do not know what's on your itinerary?
11:33Tira.
11:36No.
11:40It's common for third parties or agents to prepare false itineraries
11:43for people entering illegally,
11:45so Pratesh needs to separate fact from fiction.
11:49So I see your itinerary has an Apex rental car?
11:54OK, no, I have not rented car.
11:57Your itinerary also has travelled to Queenstown Central.
12:01Where do you think Queenstown Central is?
12:11In Auckland.
12:12With a holiday looking like the least likely reason the man has flown in,
12:17Pratesh explores other options.
12:19Do you have any New Zealand contacts?
12:22Any family?
12:23Any friends here in New Zealand?
12:27What's your name?
12:29My brother is working here in New Zealand.
12:33He got his work visa.
12:35OK, what's his name?
12:37Apakah nama dia?
12:38Pratesh, I just want to correct that.
12:40It's not brother.
12:41He got a sister,
12:42who he assumed the age was 24 years.
12:45Oh, it's a sister.
12:46OK, cool.
12:47And what does she do for work?
12:48He's not really sure what job his sister is working,
12:51but he thinks his sister is working in a construction field.
12:54Yeah, it's all looking very shady at this stage.
12:59It appears that this passenger does not meet any of the entry requirements to New Zealand.
13:04At the air cargo inspection facility, an ordinary looking package from the US,
13:16labelled as paper shredders, is anything but ordinary to customs officer Jack.
13:19A bit unusual to import two paper shredders as you can easily get them from your local stationery store in New Zealand.
13:27So we're just going to quickly chuck these through our 2D and 3D x-ray.
13:32X-raying allows the officers to safely see inside the packages before handling,
13:37and won't damage them if they turn out to be legitimate consignments.
13:40What stands out to me is this little secret compartment we've got here at the bottom.
13:49Looks like it's a concealment.
13:51I'm just going to take it to our bench, open it up, have a look at it in more detail,
13:55and see what we've got.
13:57Are the shredders concealing something dangerous or harmless?
14:05Ooh.
14:07So yep, we've got two shredders here.
14:09They do feel unusually heavy.
14:12Let's open up one and see what's inside.
14:21So that's the base.
14:23Got no concerns about this right here.
14:27Now this is what I've got concerns about.
14:31That's this little thin compartment.
14:34From inside, it does look consistent, but when you look on the outside,
14:37there's still a giant gap missing, or we can't see.
14:41And having a figure on the side, it does feel a bit lumpy and a bit wide than what it should be.
14:47The second American shredder also looks short on space.
14:54Yeah, we've got a big chunk, about three inches, missing.
14:56What do these lost three inches contain?
15:10A traveller from Malaysia has arrived for a holiday ill-prepared...
15:15Has he actually read the itinerary?
15:17Awww.
15:19...underfunded...
15:21...$150 New Zealand currency.
15:23And that's all?
15:25...and immigration officer Pratesh is unconvinced.
15:30Do you have a hotel booking?
15:32Or any accommodation booking?
15:34Yes, I have an auto booking.
15:38The man has made a booking for just one night's accommodation.
15:41Now, I will go and verify the information he has provided me.
15:45You can stay here for now.
15:48Just going to verify the information and see, but it's not looking very good at this stage.
15:53Pratesh checks on the man's accommodation booking.
15:57Card declined.
15:59OK.
16:00Without a return ticket, a place to stay or sufficient funds, the man cannot support himself in New Zealand and he risks becoming stuck.
16:08A risk Immigration New Zealand will not take.
16:11He does not meet the funds requirement at this stage.
16:14He claims to have a booking at IBIS Budget in Auckland for one day, not paid.
16:20No transport arrangements.
16:22He has a sister here in New Zealand.
16:24He's got no plans to stay with his sister.
16:26OK.
16:27He does not know the address of the sister.
16:29I am going to refuse him entry to New Zealand.
16:32Yeah, that sounds good.
16:35Having completed a peer review, it's pretty clear the man will be on the next flight home.
16:40I am not satisfied you are a genuine visitor to New Zealand.
16:44My decision is to refuse your entry permission.
16:48With entry to New Zealand no longer an option, the man is now forthcoming about his real reason for being here.
16:58I also have a brother who has been living here for almost one year.
17:07You have a brother in New Zealand?
17:09He came as a tourist visitor and then he overstayed for almost one year.
17:14So the whole reason I am here in Auckland to convince him to bring him back home.
17:18My brother no ticket, no money.
17:22Oh, OK.
17:24I am trying to reach out his friend to tell me where he is staying and where is he about.
17:32Without an address or contact number for his brother, his mission to bring him home will have to be done by other means.
17:39He needs to get money to go back because if he stay here, problem.
17:46People who overstay their visa put themselves in a very vulnerable position.
17:51They cannot work legally or access health care.
17:54The passenger will be placed on the next available flight to depart New Zealand.
17:59The information obtained from the passenger about his brother who is overstaying in New Zealand will be passed on to the immigration compliance team
18:06who will further investigate the issue.
18:12Over at the International Mail Centre, Biosecurity New Zealand Officer Honey is inspecting incoming packages.
18:20And one particular package has piqued her interest.
18:24I see specimen jars.
18:27The jars might have plants, animals or other organisms.
18:32We need to know what's inside the jars.
18:33The parcel has been declared as home decor.
18:38Hmm, skull and bones.
18:41The hand pressed seal hints that there could be something sinister inside.
18:48Oh.
18:50Hmm.
18:52The specimen is labelled as shrimp.
18:54Rather than a cocktail, this little guy has ended up in a display bottle.
18:58What other strange specimens has the sender got in store?
19:03Looks like a bird.
19:05It's labelled as common quail.
19:08Then there's a tentacle.
19:10This is an interesting colour octopus.
19:13A baby mouse.
19:15The specimen is in a solution.
19:17Fish eyes and other creepy crawlies.
19:20This is labelled as super worm.
19:21This is labelled as super worm.
19:23Are these ingredients for some kind of spell?
19:26Looks like a mouse to me.
19:29The unusual animal objects prompt Honey to seek some wisdom of her own.
19:34So what I'm going to do is check the exporter to help me with my decision.
19:39So I found it.
19:44First one is the necklace.
19:46The important part is it's properly preserved.
19:50Encased in the resin.
19:52Size and shape and colour of a mouse might slightly vary, but will be similarly weird and cute.
19:59With a smiley emoji.
20:02The necklace may not be a biosecurity risk, but it's still bizarre.
20:09The exporter is a biologist and also an earth witch from Ukraine.
20:17Very strong and unusual type of magic.
20:21The website also states the animals were not killed for display.
20:25I take what others discard and make it desirable again.
20:28Making it a creepy kind of recycling.
20:32But is it safe?
20:34The container is fully sealed.
20:37I don't see any leakage.
20:41This has been preserved in 70% rubbing alcohol meets our import health standard.
20:49This definitely helps me with my biosecurity decision of releasing the items to the importer.
20:55So someone will be receiving their creepy carton of curiosities shortly.
21:05Back at the air cargo inspection facility, Customs Officer Jack is inspecting a pair of paper shredders from the US that don't quite measure up.
21:13Yeah, we've got a big chunk, about three inches missing.
21:17It's having a closer look.
21:19It looks like it's just glued inside.
21:22I can just see between the cracks a little bag inside the hole right here.
21:27So there's definitely a concealment right here.
21:31I'm just going to do a quick swab, see if I can pick up anything from the substance.
21:35So let's put it in that little crack.
21:37A little crack.
21:45A methamphetamine.
21:47Where the presence of drugs has been indicated, Customs may use force to break items open.
21:52Fire open the pulse bottom.
22:02There we go.
22:04Pale concealment of methamphetamine.
22:09Just emptying the paper shredder of methamphetamine.
22:12The second shredder is filled with a similar quantity of the same substance.
22:16A little sample there.
22:20Methamphetamine is a Class A controlled drug, meaning it poses the greatest harm.
22:26It is a lot.
22:29Fortunately, this batch will not be going into the community now.
22:33The last thing to do is just wait and see how much we got.
22:35Roughly around about 2.6 kgs of methamphetamine.
22:46So this is a great find from the Customs and it will be sent to our investigations team.
22:51On the street, this concealment might have fetched more than $900,000, but instead it will be destroyed.
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