‘RM200m in drugs seized this year’
KUALA LUMPUR: Police have dealt a severe blow to drug trafficking syndicates this year, seizing almost RM200 million in illegal drugs.
As of Dec 21, an assortment of traditional and synthetic drugs, with a total value of RM192.03 million, were confiscated in various operations.
Police also made 163,931 drug-related arrests, of which 95 per cent, or 155,876, were locals, and 8,055 were foreigners.
A total of 24,045 people were arrested for supplying drugs, 57,284 for drug possession and 82,602 for testing positive in urine drug screenings.
A total of 1,232 of the arrests were made under the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952.
The statistics were released yesterday by the Narcotics Criminal Investigation Department.
The synthetics drugs seized during the period comprised 1,190.67kg of crystal syabu (methamphetamine), 377.04kg of ketamine, 261,717 ecstasy pills, 903,573 yaba (amphetamine) pills and 2,741,310 pills of Erimin5 (street name for a drug called Nimetazepam).
The traditional drugs seized were 1,848.71kg of ganja (cannabis) and 435.59kg of heroin.
A total of RM111.55 million worth of assets were impounded, with RM12.14 million worth of properties confiscated.
Narcotics Criminal Investigation Department director Datuk Seri Mohmad Salleh said the complete statistics for this year would be announced early next year.
“The war on drugs is becoming more challenging by the day, as is evident from the increasing drug seizures and raids on drug-processing laboratories,” he said at the Sentul police headquarters.
Mohmad announced that the police had crippled a drug syndicate with the seizure of RM1.7 million worth of narcotics for the local and international markets.
He said police conducted four raids last Wednesday (Dec 27) and arrested three Malaysian men aged between 29 and 56, believed to be members of the drug syndicate, at different locations in Selangor and here.
He said the raids, conducted between 4.15pm and 6.50pm in four housing areas, were carried out by the Federal Police Special Tactical Intelligence Narcotics Group.
He said police confiscated a Proton Persona and a Perodua Myvi, worth an estimated RM45,000.
All three tested positive for drugs, and were detained under Section 117 of the Criminal Procedure Code to facilitate investigations under Section 39B of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952.
One of the suspects had a criminal record, with two previous arrests under Section 148 of the Penal Code for rioting.