KUALA LUMPUR: Another case involving Malaysians detained abroad over drugs has emerged, with the latest incident involving three women arrested at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Jakarta on Monday (Aug 3).
Bukit Aman Narcotics Criminal Investigation Department (NCID) director Comm Datuk Hussein Omar Khan (pic) said his department was informed by the Indonesian National Police (POLRI) of the arrest of the three women, aged between 30 and 39 years old, who are from Sabah.
He said investigations found that two of them had previous drug-related criminal records. However, the quantity of drugs seized by POLRI was small and believed to be for personal use.
“The arrest of the three women was also found to have no connection with the previous cases involving the detention of a pilot or a 22-year-old man in Indonesia,” he told Bernama after appearing as a guest on Bernama Radio’s Waspada programme Wednesday (Aug 5).
The media had previously reported that personnel at Terminal 2F of the airport had foiled an attempt by three female passengers to bring in drugs hidden in their luggage and shoes after they arrived on a flight from Kota Kinabalu.
Meanwhile, commenting on the series of drug arrests involving Malaysians abroad, Hussein did not deny that the country’s geographical position was among the factors behind Malaysia being used as a transit route by international drug trafficking syndicates.
“These drug trafficking syndicates mostly operate from countries north of Malaysia, and our country becomes a transit route before the drugs are taken to Indonesia, Singapore, the Philippines and several other countries.
“Therefore, we will further tighten existing standard operating procedures (SOPs) at the country’s entry and exit points to ensure Malaysia is no longer labelled as a drug transit country,” he said.
Meanwhile, to demonstrate the Royal Malaysia Police’s continued firmness in combating cross-border crime, Comm Hussein revealed that NCID seized 89 tonnes of various types of drugs nationwide last year.
He said the momentum of enforcement operations remained consistent this year, with nearly 46 tonnes of drugs seized in the first six months of the year. — Bernama
