Ben Gurion Airport Customs Dog Amika Marks Four Years of Smuggling Detection
Amika, a veteran customs K-9 at Ben Gurion Airport, is celebrating her sixth birthday after four years of intercepting thousands of smuggled tobacco and nicotine products.
Next week, Amika the customs dog will celebrate her sixth birthday, marking four years of service with the Israel Customs K-9 unit at Ben Gurion Airport. During her career, she has become one of the unit's top experts in detecting tobacco and nicotine products, helping uncover thousands of smuggled items hidden using various methods.
Amika and her handler Adam began their partnership four years ago during professional training in the Czech Republic. After completing the course, they returned to Israel as an operational team specializing in contraband detection. Since then, Amika has built an impressive operational record, tracking smuggled goods from countries such as Georgia, Thailand, the Netherlands, Russia, and Uzbekistan, as well as intercepting packages sent via FedEx and Swissport.
One of her most notable achievements took place at the Modiin mail facility, where Amika successfully flagged 166 packages containing electronic cigarettes. Unit commanders describe her as one of the most independent dogs in the field, capable of conducting searches with minimal guidance and contributing significantly to the expansion of the K-9 tobacco detection division.
