PETALING JAYA: The pilot detained in Indonesia last month with about 25kg of drugs is believed to have smuggled illicit substances to several countries multiple times since 2024.
Bukit Aman Narcotics Crime Investigation Department (NCID) director Comm Datuk Hussein Omar Khan said the information was revealed by the suspect during questioning by Malaysian police in Jakarta.
Comm Hussein said the suspect allegedly transported drugs out of Malaysia to several destinations based on his flight schedule.
“He has been involved since 2024, with his role being to transport drugs out of the country to several destinations according to his flight schedule.
“This was not his first time, as he had transported drugs to several countries on multiple occasions,” he said on Sunday (Aug 16) according to a Sinar Harian report.
Previously reported that the NCID team met and questioned the pilot in Jakarta in a session initially scheduled for Wednesday (Aug 12) and Thursday (Aug 13) before being extended by a day until Friday (Aug 14), with permission from the Indonesian National Police.
The 39-year-old suspect was arrested at the International Arrival Terminal of Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Tangerang, Banten, on July 29 after arriving from Kuala Lumpur on flight MH727.
He was detained at about 11.30pm after Indonesian customs officers detected suspicious luggage through an X-ray scan and directed him to an inspection room after he collected the bag.
Further checks found 14 packages containing 70,114 ecstasy pills weighing about 25kg in the luggage, as well as 4g of methamphetamine in his carry-on belongings.
Comm Hussein said the questioning also revealed information on several drug syndicates in Malaysia and other countries, including Indonesia.
“Police will conduct further investigations into identified syndicate members, including examining financial flows linked to drug sales.
“Information on the international syndicate network will also be shared with drug enforcement agencies in the countries concerned,” he said.
Meanwhile, investigations found no indication of insider involvement at Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) when the suspect passed through security checks.
“The questioning found no indication of insider involvement at KLIA.
“This means he acted alone when passing through the checks, and this needs to be examined further to determine how the drugs went undetected,” he said.
However, Hussein did not disclose the method allegedly used by the suspect to evade security checks to avoid compromising the investigation.
The pilot remains in the custody of Indonesian police and will have to undergo the legal process in Indonesia.
On the possibility of the suspect being extradited to Malaysia, Hussein said the matter involved the authorities of both countries and declined to comment further.
He added that investigations were still ongoing to determine the number of shipments, destination countries and the amount of payment received by the suspect since 2024.
