Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – Movie pirates are spraying chemicals on their bootleg DVDs to confuse two U.S.- loaned dogs that have helped Malaysian authorities sniff out nearly 1 million illegal discs, an official said Monday.
The two female Labradors have been trained to detect polycarbonate chemicals used in manufacturing discs. But officials received a tip that bootleggers are using chemical sprays to throw Lucky and Flo off the scent, said Fahmi Kassim, the Domestic Trade Ministry’s enforcement chief in southern Johor state.
“The pirates are believed to be desperate because the dogs were so successful,” Fahmi told The Associated Press.
Ministry authorities last week said the dogs were moved to a safe house after a source informed them that DVD and CD pirates were offering a bounty to anyone who could kill the dogs, on loan for at least a month from the Motion Picture Association of America.
The dogs, which began sniffing out disc shipments at Malaysia’s main airport March 13, won acclaim when they traveled south to Johor, helping officials uncover 1 million pirated DVDs, CDs and computer- game discs worth $2.8 million in an office complex March 19.
Fahmi declined to say whether Lucky and Flo were still in Johor, citing security reasons.
The MPAA says Lucky and Flo’s work is the first time authorities anywhere in the world have used dogs to detect contraband discs.
