CUSTOMS DEPT SEIZES RM13 MLN WORTH OF DRUGS AFTER CRIPPLING DISTRIBUTION SYNDICATE

NILAI, May 16 (Bernama) -- The Royal Malaysian Customs Department (JKDM) dismantled a drug distribution syndicate and seized various types of drugs, including heroin, ketamine and cannabis, weighing 145 kilogrammes (kg) and worth an estimated RM13 million, over a two-month period.

Its assistant director-general (Enforcement), Raizam Setapa@Mustapha, said the operation was conducted in Batu Caves, Salak Selatan, Sentul and Subang Jaya and at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) Cargo.

He said his team, detected the use of moving services was one of the new modus operandi used to smuggle drugs, when it inspected a mover company's warehouse in Batu Caves on April 10.

“The team seized 90 boxes of various sizes in the said warehouse, and found 344 compressed blocks of suspected heroin, weighing 122.85 kg and worth RM11.5 million, inside four boxes containing modified speakers to be sent to Australia, while the remaining 86 boxes contained household items," he told reporters at a press conference at the JKDM Narcotics branch in Kampung Jijan here today.

Raizam said that this case is the first time it detected a drug syndicate using mover services to send goods using containers to Port Klang.

In a separate case, Raizam said that on May 13 at about 9.45 pm, a team of officers along with detection dogs (K9) from the JKDM Narcotics branch inspected three boxes of goods at a logistics company's warehouse at the KLIA Cargo.

He said they found five transparent plastic bags containing white crystal powder suspected to be methamphetamine, with an estimated weight of 5,105 grammes (gms) and valued at RM163,360, hidden among safety boots for export abroad.

Meanwhile, on April 3, a raid at a condominium in Salak Selatan uncovered 5,000 gms of MDMA (methylenedioxy-methamphetamine) worth an estimated RM835,000. Following that, another raid at a condominium in Sentul, Kuala Lumpur, found 6,176 gms of ketamine and 763 gms of cannabis, worth RM311,165.50.

According to him, the modus operandi involved using air courier services to import drugs into the country, and a local male suspect was arrested and charged in court.

Meanwhile, on April 10, the team found 5,106 gms of suspected methamphetamine crystal powder worth RM163,392 when raiding a courier company's premises in Subang Jaya.

"The discovery of the drugs was the result of inspecting a parcel containing footwear. The syndicate's modus operandi was to hide drugs inside modified footwear for export via air courier services. Following that, a local male suspect was arrested and charged in court," he said, adding that all cases are being investigated under Section 39B(1)(a) of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952.

-- BERNAMA