IPOH: The Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Ministry (KPDN) seized more than 21,000 litres of diesel worth over RM202,000 during a pre-dawn raid at a fishing jetty in Hutan Melintang.
Perak KPDN director Datuk Kamalludin Ismail said the operation was carried out at about 3am on Friday (June 5) by enforcement officers from KPDN’s Teluk Intan branch.
He said this followed a week-long intelligence gathering exercise into suspicious tanker lorry movements in and out of the area during late night and early morning hours.
“A tanker lorry believed to have transported 21,840 litres of diesel from the Klang Valley and subsequently uncovered inconsistencies in documentation and a suspicious supply chain linked to the fuel consignment was seized.
“Two local men, aged 30 and 60, believed to be the lorry driver and the premises owner, were detained to assist investigations,” he said in a statement on Saturday (June 6).
He said the premises owner failed to produce valid approval documents from the Malaysian Supply Controller for activities involving controlled goods.
“Enforcement officers seized the 27-tonne tanker lorry, 21,840 litres of liquid suspected to be diesel fuel and several related documents. The total value of the seizure was estimated at RM202,211.20.
“The case is being investigated under the Supply Control Act 1961 and the Supply Control Regulations 1974.
“The individuals convicted of offences under the Act face a fine of up to RM1mil, imprisonment of up to three years, or both, while companies can be fined up to RM2mil for a first offence and up to RM5mil for subsequent offences,” he said.
He also said that KPDN is also investigating the supplier involved in the case and warned that the licences of those found guilty could be revoked in addition to penalties.
Kamalludin urged members of the public to report any incident related to the smuggling or misappropriation of controlled and subsidised goods to help curb leakages in government subsidies and protect public resources.
