GEORGE TOWN: Intelligence sharing between Malaysian and Thai police led to the bust of a cross-border drug syndicate and the seizure of 252.2kg of methamphetamine.
On the Malaysian side alone, the seizure was valued at RM4.73mil, comprising 86.2kg of methamphetamine and five vehicles.
Penang police chief Comm Datuk Dennis Lim said the syndicate had modified the vehicle with a concealed compartment to store and transport the drugs.
He said the operation began with the arrest of a Malaysian man at a roadblock in Hua Hin, Prachuap Khiri Khan, Thailand, on Aug 8 after 166kg of methamphetamine was found in his vehicle.
“This led to the launch of Ops Zoraptera, with Malaysian police arresting three Malaysian men and a Thai woman, aged between 19 and 25, in Selangor on Aug 13. The woman is married to one of the men,” he told a press conference yesterday.
The following day, Bukit Aman Narcotics Crime Investigation Department (NCID) officers inspected a car parked near a hotel in Butterworth, Penang, and found the drugs inside.
He said each person involved in transporting a shipment was paid RM6,000 per trip, with two or three people involved in each trip.
“Investigations showed that they had made several trips, as the syndicate had been active since June last year.”
Comm Lim said three suspects, including the married couple, were charged at the Butterworth Magistrate’s Court on Aug 27 under Section 39B of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952.
The fourth suspect, a 19-year-old, was made a prosecution witness.
