KUALA LUMPUR: Police seized MDMA worth nearly RM600mil, enough to supply 12 million users, crippling several drug processing labs in the Klang Valley.
The drug haul – the country’s largest this year – came from raids carried out under Ops Pine on Sept 10 by Bukit Aman Narcotics Crime Investigation Department (NCID).
The drugs, also known as ecstasy, are believed to be meant for distribution both locally and overseas.
Inspector-General of Police Datuk Seri Mohd Khalid Ismail said four men, aged between 34 and 51, were detained in the operation and have been remanded for further investigation.
One of them was allegedly the coordinator and the rest were a chemist, an assistant and a transporter.
Three suspects were detained at a drug lab in Kepong Industrial Park, Kuala Lumpur.
“We seized 136 barrels and a plastic container believed to contain 3,330kg of MDMA, 563 glass bottles with 1,200kg of chemicals, as well as various drug-processing equipment,” said Mohd Khalid.
At another premises in the same area, police found 25.3kg of MDMA in powder form, 231.15kg of the drug in liquid form and 947.35kg of chemicals.
“In a third raid, we arrested the fourth suspect at a house in Dataran Templer but no drugs were found,” he told reporters at the Police Training Centre yesterday.
In total, police seized 3,586.45kg of MDMA worth RM598.9mil.
Initial investigations revealed that the syndicate had been operating since July by renting premises in industrial areas and converting them into drug labs.
Mohd Khalid said police also seized the syndicate’s assets, including five luxury vehicles, a forklift and jewellery, estimated to be worth RM336,244.
Police are tracking down other syndicate members believed to be linked to an international drug trafficking network.
The nation’s top cop said NCID has so far seized drugs worth nearly RM2bil this year.
“Between January and Sept 14, a total of 174,134 cases were recorded, leading to 189,788 arrests across all levels of the drug trade from traffickers, suppliers and couriers to addicts.
“A total of 83,305kg of solid drugs and 69,155.85 litres of liquid drugs worth RM1.96bil were confiscated during the same period,” he said.
Mohd Khalid said the NCID’s successes reflect not only the scale of the challenge but also the police’s firm stance in combating smuggling, trafficking and drug abuse.
He stressed that police would not compromise on anyone involved in drug-related activities.
He also urged the public to report on drug-related activities to the NCID via its hotline at 012-208 7222.
He guaranteed that all information would be treated with strict confidentiality.
On the recent takedown of a syndicate in Myanmar believed to be smuggling drugs into Malaysia, Mohd Khalid said Bukit Aman is awaiting further details from Myanmar authorities.
He said collaboration with their Myanmar counterparts is ongoing as investigations continue.
It was reported that police are probing possible links between local syndicates and the international drug network operating out of Myanmar, following a series of major seizures there.
Myanmar media reported that a syndicate suspected of trafficking drugs to Malaysia was crippled following a raid in Yangon on Sept 5.
Six suspects were arrested in the operation, during which police uncovered 1,840kg of methamphetamine, four million stimulant pills and 14kg of heroin.
