PETALING JAYA: Three premises suspected of bottling and distributing engine oil using counterfeit trademarks were raided in a joint operation by police and Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Ministry in Ara Damansara and Kepong on Tuesday (April 29).
Senior Asst Comm Mohammad Azlin Sadari, the deputy director of Bukit Aman Internal Security and Public Order Department’s Wildlife Crime Bureau/Special Intelligence Investigation (WCB/PSK), said 13 suspects were also arrested.
They included seven foreign nationals from Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, he added.
"The raids were conducted after nearly two months of intelligence gathering. Initial investigations revealed that the syndicate allegedly rebottled engine oil and affixed labels of well-known local and international vehicle manufacturers without authorisation, using fake addresses on the bottles.
"They then marketed the products via e-commerce platforms and social media. The syndicate is believed to have been operating for two to three years and had raked in millions of ringgit in profits,” he told reporters here on Tuesday.
The operation, involving WCB/PSK personnel from Bukit Aman and ministry enforcement officers, was led by the bureau's Intelligence/Special Investigation principal assistant director Asst Comm Zulkarnain Samsudin.
Seized items included engine oil, empty bottles and labels bearing various brand names.
"We are still investigating the source of the engine oil used by the syndicate, and assessing the total value of items seized from all three locations,” said SAC Azlin.
The case is being investigated under Section 102 1(c) of the Trademarks Act 2019 and Section 5 of the Trade Descriptions Act 2011.
A check at the Ara Damansara premises found it to be a commercial unit filled with engine oil bottles of various brands and large tanks believed to be used for storing and rebottling oil into four-litre containers. – Bernama
