The Information Branch affiliated with the regime forces arrested employees and workers at the Nassib-Jaber border crossing with Jordan in a case of forging import permits and financing letters in the customs authority of the crossing, along with traders dealing with the employees to issue forged import permits and financing letters.

A security source in the Nassib customs told Enab Baladi that the arrests have been ongoing for about two months after accusations of “corruption” were directed at workers in the Nassib border customs, and the accusations involved the disappearance of 99 records from the customs records which the employees are accused of withdrawing.

The customs losses amounted to about ten million dollars due to the forgery of customs data and seals, with the purpose of the forgeries being “to bring smuggled goods into Syria,” according to the security source working in the customs.

Since early December, about 80 employees of the Nassib crossing were arrested, along with the heads of the security detachments inside it, in addition to customs brokers.

Meanwhile, a part of the crossing’s employees fled before an arrest warrant was issued against them to outside Syria, with the help of officers and other officials, according to the source.

On the other hand, a number of employees and officials were forced to resign and pay a financial penalty estimated at millions of Syrian pounds, while on Wednesday, January 17, about 30 employees were arrested, including individuals who worked in selling stamps inside the crossing, according to the security source.

The local Al-Watan newspaper, for its part, said that most of those involved in the “forgery of import permits and financing letters” were arrested by the Information Branch of the Criminal Security Directorate, alongside a “large section” of the traders dealing with them, and they were referred to the judiciary.

It added on January 8 that arrest warrants in absentia were issued against the main culprits in the case who managed to escape, and “search broadcasts” were issued for others.

Al-Watan also said that the customs court released those not involved in the forgery operation who were arrested during the campaign, including traders who were audited and fined according to the “Customs Law” for the crime of “importation through smuggling.”

In 11 warehouses across various provinces, the General Directorate of Customs seized goods related to the forgery case, where the total fines collected exceeded 33 billion Syrian pounds out of 220 billion Syrian pounds, according to Al-Watan newspaper.

For years, the Nassib-Jaber border crossing between Syria and Jordan has been a point of drug smuggling into Jordanian territory, in addition to the flow of similar smuggling operations across the borders, as previously stated by Jordanian officials.

The Jordanian Interior Minister Mazen al-Faraya, in October 2023, said that his country treats every truck that enters the Nassib-Jaber crossing from Syria as if it is loaded with drugs, according to what was reported by the Jordanian Ammon news agency.