MMEA foils attempt to smuggle in drugs on fishing boat in Melaka waters

- Picture courtesy of MMEA

MELAKA: A drug trafficking syndicate has been using traditional fishing boats to mask their smuggling activities, says the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA).

Melaka-Negri Sembilan MMEA director Maritime Captain Haris Fadzillah Abdullah said his team made a breakthrough when they seized syabu worth an estimated value of RM36,000 during an operation at 10.15pm on Saturday (Oct 23) in Tanjung Kling waters here.

He said the operation was conducted following information and continuous intelligence gathering.

"The smugglers' modus operandi was to use common fishing vessels and not the usual high-speed boats to avoid detection," he said on Sunday (Oct 24) adding that the MMEA was conducting an in-depth investigation over the latest development.

He said in the operation on Saturday, the fishing boat attempted to flee when the MMEA patrol boat intercepted it.

Haris Fadzillah said the skipper of the boat tossed a black plastic package overboard before fleeing the scene.

He said that further inspection found that the package contained one kilogramme of syabu.

"The case is being investigated under Section 39B of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952," he said, adding that no arrests were made.