KEPALA BATAS: Penang police have busted two drug trafficking syndicates, seizing narcotics worth over RM700,000 and arresting seven suspects.
North Seberang Prai OCPD Asst Comm Mohd Radzi Ahmad said the state Narcotics Criminal Investigation Department conducted four separate raids at Butterworth and Bayan Lepas on Thursday (Aug 4).
ACP Mohd Radzi said acting on intelligence gathered over a week, police arrested a couple aged 33 and 36 in Bayan Lepas at about 2.30pm.
"Following the arrest police went to raid a house in Taman Bagan where we detained two men and two women aged between 32 and 66 and related to the couple at about 4.30pm," he said in a statement on Monday (Aug 8).
ACP Mohd Radzi said police then raided a courier service company at Bayan Lepas at about 6.30pm on Thursday where they found 259g of syabu worth an estimated RM9,324 believed to belong to the syndicates.
He said police went to the house at Taman Bagan again at about 11.30pm the same day where they discovered 427 packets of MDMA powder weighing 13,462g worth RM673,100, and 333g of syabu worth RM11,988.
ACP Mohd Radzi said the syndicates had been operating since June and used courier service companies to transport the drugs as a means of avoiding detection by the authorities.
He said in all, police confiscated 592g of syabu and 13,462g of MDMA powder worth a total of RM694,412.
"We believe the drugs confiscated were not only for local distribution but also for overseas," he said.
ACP Mohd Radzi said the drugs seized can feed the habit of 3,319 addicts.
He said all the suspects tested negative for drugs, but three had criminal records.
He said the suspects were remanded for seven days from Friday (Aug 5) to help with the investigation.
During the operation, police also confiscated a car worth RM23,000 and RM1,500 in cash.
Police were still trying to determine if there were other syndicate members still at large.
In the second operation, ACP Mohd Radzi said a 26-year-old man believed to be part of a drug syndicate was arrested for alleged involvement in trafficking synthetic drugs.
He said the suspect was arrested during an operation by the North Seberang police headquarters NCID on Thursday.
"The suspect was detained at a house in Mak Mandin, where police found 142 packets of MDMA powder weighing 1,386g, three packets of ketamine weighing about 3g, five ecstasy pills and 17 erimin 5 pills," he said.
He said the drugs seized can feed the habit of 200 addicts.
He said the suspect tested positive for methamphetamine and ketamine, but had no criminal record.
During the raid police also seized a car worth RM20,000.
Both cases are being investigated under Section 39B of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952.
