JOHOR BARU: Police have busted a drug syndicate with the arrest of six suspects, including two foreigners, and the seizure of various drugs worth RM1.28mil.
Johor Baru South OCPD Asst Comm Raub Selamat said the suspects, four local men, a Singaporean man and a Thai woman, were arrested in a series of raids between June 12 and 13.
“They repackaged the drugs into three-in-one juice or coffee sachets, which were then sold locally for RM150 to RM300 per packet, mostly to acquaintances.
“The syndicate is believed to have been active since April this year and had been renting apartments to carry out their operations.
“They would stay at one place for a short period before moving to another location to avoid detection,” he told a press conference at the Johor Baru South police headquarters.
ACP Raub said a 31-year-old local man, believed to be the mastermind, was among those arrested.
“Among the drugs seized were 7.67kg of ecstasy powder, 13.60g of ketamine and 8g of Erimin 5 pills.
“The drugs, worth about RM1.28mil, could have fed the addiction of over 2,000 users,” he said.
He added that two vehicles, RM3,000 in cash and jewellery worth RM8,365 were also seized, bringing the total value of items seized to more than RM1.48mil.
“Urine tests showed all suspects were positive for methamphetamine, while two of the local men had prior drug and criminal records,” he said, adding that the suspects, all believed to be friends, were aged between 30 and 39 years old.
All suspects have been remanded for 12 days from June 13 to 24 to facilitate investigations under Section 39B and Section 15(1)(a) of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952.
