SHAH ALAM: Police have crippled an international drug trafficking syndicate that used Malaysia as a transit route after arresting nine individuals and seizing drugs worth a total of RM21.62mil.
Bukit Aman Narcotics Crime Investigation Department (NCID) director Comm Datuk Hussein Omar Khan said the success under Ops Lejogaster was the result of continuous intelligence gathering and surveillance carried out from July 12 to Aug 3.
He said the nine suspects, aged between 22 and 51, comprised one local man and eight foreign men who were arrested in three separate raids in Penang, Selangor and Negri Sembilan.
“The operation also rescued four foreigners from being further exploited and used as drug mules by the syndicate.
“Ops Lejogaster, which was conducted from July 12 to Aug 3, was the result of continuous intelligence gathering and surveillance by Bukit Aman NCID to uncover a syndicate trafficking cannabis buds for the international market,” he said at a press conference at the Selangor Police Headquarters here, on Tuesday (Aug 11).
The first raid was conducted on July 12 in front of the lobby of a hotel in Bayan Lepas, Penang, where two suspects were arrested.
Checks on a vehicle found two luggage bags containing 60 packets of suspected cannabis buds weighing 31.72kg.
Following the arrests, police searched a house in Bayan Lepas and seized another 60 packets of cannabis buds weighing 31.14kg.
On Aug 3, the second raid was conducted at a house in Taman Bukit Citra, Mantin, Negri Sembilan, where a suspect was arrested and 10 luggage bags containing 170 packets of cannabis buds weighing 175.76kg were seized.
Police then arrested five more foreigners in Sepang, Selangor, four of whom were believed to have acted as drug mules.
The third raid was conducted on the same day at Penang International Airport in Bayan Lepas, where another foreigner was arrested with two luggage bags containing 60 packets of cannabis buds weighing 31.65kg.
In total, police seized 270.27kg of cannabis buds worth about RM21.62mil, along with 0.5g of methamphetamine.
Police also seized various assets estimated to be worth RM117,172, including jewellery, mobile phones, laptops and a vehicle, bringing the total value of seizures to RM21.73 million.
The case is being investigated under Section 39B of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952.
